I hate regret. That certainly isn't unusual - regret is a horrible feeling. When we start to feel guilty or regret something, we often try to avoid these feelings. We use tools like distraction or self-justification. But unless we actually deal with what is going on, these are difficult feelings to escape. They linger. They … Continue reading Dealing with guilt and regret
I'm guessing that you've heard of a counselor. Have you heard of a "life coach"? This is a newer side of the mental health profession, and it is one that iHope is excited to be expanding into during 2021. There are certainly overlaps between counseling and coaching, but there are some important differences. What's similar? … Continue reading How are coaching and counseling different?
It is difficult to wrap our brains around God’s call to “Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13). We’ve looked in past weeks at why we must forgive as well as the question of how to forgive someone who has hurt us. But sometimes, we struggle most at forgiving ourselves. Sometimes, when we look … Continue reading How can I forgive myself?
How well do you remember the reason why you do what you do? Why did you pick the career that you have? Why did you marry your spouse? Why did you decide to have children? Why do you attend church? Why did you accept your current job? Why did you become a Christian? It is … Continue reading Don’t Forget the Why
We often like to think of our life in little silos. What I do in area X should have no impact on area Y! Well, this is simply not how God made us. God created us as intricate, complex creatures - and every part of life has an impact on every other part of life. … Continue reading Physical health impacts our mental health
Even though our world is more and more connected, individual people consistently report feeling more and more lonely. We don’t like it, but we all feel it. At least sometimes. There are many reasons why the struggle with loneliness has grown. We work remotely, fill our schedules to the gills, and zone out for hours … Continue reading No one likes to feel lonely
I am a big believer in setting goals. Not only is it helpful to have something specific that you are working toward, I think that goal-setting helps each of us to define our priorities. Sure, we want every area of life to go well and continually improve. But our energy is limited. Our time, money, … Continue reading The turning of the calendar: Set some goals!
I don’t like to be in pain. Be it physical, emotional, spiritual - I dislike the experience of pain. I know that pain can bring positive end results… and so I exercise even when I don’t feel like it. But pain is not a fun experience. Let me guess: You know what I’m talking about. … Continue reading Yes, God brought me this trial
Over the past month, we’ve looked at the reality of life’s setbacks and detours and taken encouragement from the fact that God’s plans are bigger than our plans. But one of the other reasons why we experience setbacks in life is not quite as encouraging. Sometimes, our heartaches and struggles are simply part of the experience of … Continue reading Handling the heartache of a broken world
We all know the “correct” answer here. Isaiah 55 answers this question directly: “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” So why do I live as if my plans are better than the Lord’s plans? As we looked at in … Continue reading Are my plans really better than the Lord’s plans?