Mental Health

Wide Margins For the Bullied

Wide Margins For the Bullied

Bulls are known for aggressive, threatening behavior; that’s why we call people who behave this way towards others ‘bullies.’ Tight limits and wide margins are not only wise in a pasture, it’s also wise in ministry.

What the Babylon Bee can teach the church about mental health ministry

What the Babylon Bee can teach the church about mental health ministry

He regularly provides a lighthearted, first-person perspective as a prominent individual in Christian culture whose ministry has been shaped by his mental health condition.  The Bee shines a spotlight on the challenges many people with anxiety experience in trying to be part of church.

Conduct Yourself in Truth and Love, Even Behind Closed Doors

Conduct Yourself in Truth and Love, Even Behind Closed Doors

What do you think happens to a teenager when one of the main authority figures in his life lets him know in no uncertain terms, without words, that he doesn’t matter to your church environment? God offers us all incredible love and grace, but as His followers we have the responsibility to love others with both truth and grace, even when we don’t understand what we’re seeing.

A letter to #MyYoungerSelf

A letter to #MyYoungerSelf

The Child Mind Institute has launched the #MyYoungerSelf campaign during Mental Health Month to counter the stigma for the 1 in 5 children struggling with these disorders. This May actors, athletes, social influencers, business people and others are sending a message of hope about their experiences growing up with a mental health or learning disorder. Here's a letter from the leader of our ministry team to an eleventh grade boy who was going through a difficult time.

Praying for Protection from Powers and Principalities

Praying for Protection from Powers and Principalities

I’ve been in ministry long enough to know that the prayers and time spent seeking God determine the outcome of ministry and special events. Everyone working in the space of special needs or mental health ministry needs to stay prayed up, in God’s Word, for guidance, wisdom, and protection. Make no mistake, the work of all special needs ministry, including ministry to and with people whose disability is revealed in behavior, is very much intertwined with the battle over whose life holds value. Anyone working in this space is on the front line of the battle between darkness and light.

Creating A Straight Path for Special Needs Ministry

Creating A Straight Path for Special Needs Ministry

The Christian faith is a relay race, it is the responsibility of each Christian and each church to leave a trail that clears the path for those coming behind us. This is especially true as it relates to disability ministry.

Mental Health Ministry and The Platinum Rule

 Mental Health Ministry and The Platinum Rule

When my cat died, chewy.com showed great care and concern for my loss, even beyond the principles of the Golden Rule. Chewy went all the way to the Platinum Rule. And the Platinum Rule is how churches can make mental health ministry happen and be successful.

Preparing Churches To Help With Mental Health

Preparing Churches To Help With Mental Health

When you begin thinking about your help for mental health in your church, the best place to begin is with the invitation, which will show you what kinds of preparation you need to put in place. 

Waking a Sleepy Church: The Urgent Need for Mental Health Ministry

Waking a Sleepy Church: The Urgent Need for Mental Health Ministry

Janet Parshall issued a powerful call to the church to minister more effectively to persons with mental illness in this keynote presentation from Inclusion Fusion Live 2019, a national disability ministry conference hosted by Key Ministry. She identifies key biblical figures who experienced symptoms of mental illness, challenges church leaders to end their stigmatization of persons with mental health issues and pastors to begin addressing the topic in the course of their preaching.

Celebrate a National Day of Inclusive Prayer

Celebrate a National Day of Inclusive Prayer

As we gather to pray on this National Day of Prayer, let’s make sure that people of all abilities have opportunities to join with us in worship and be part of the serving team too.