Penetrating The Darkness

How I Learned An Outrageously Encouraging Perspective on Failure   If failure is a good teacher, I had a golden learning opportunity the week of my older son’s seventh birthday. The incident occurred 39 years ago, but the details are etched forever in my...

A True Story of Caregiving for a Husband with Chronic Pain   Debbie Smith received the phone call that no one wants to get. Her husband, Mark, had been in an auto crash. The other driver, going 60 miles per hour, had abruptly veered into Mark’s lane, ramming...

The recent presidential election in the U. S. was the most polarizing one in history. Strong feelings erupted from people on both sides of the political aisle. Each of us probably holds deep convictions concerning the platform of each major party. But let's sit...

What if I could write only one blog on handling depression, or give just one 15-minute talk on the subject....what would I write or say? Since childhood, I've experienced descents into emotional darkness and despair. In His providence, God hasn't eradicated my...

  A melancholy, fragile temperament. Plagued by morbid introspection, often unable to apply the grace of God that he shared with others to himself. An unusually strong strain of weakness and depression in his family that was later traced over a span of two...

Resources and Practical Ideas for Enhancing Ministry to Depressed Persons A personal note from Terry:  Most people who are reading this are not pastors, associate church staff or board members. Yet even if you aren't a ministry leader, you can play a pivotal role...

An Extremely Encouraging Perspective on Your Future Fruitfulness   You've seen the ripple effect. Toss a pebble into the pond. Tiny waves, forming concentric circles, roll outward from the point of impact until they become too small to see. Figuratively...

Have you ever been decked by a verbal punch? During the fall semester of 2007, one succinct, unsolicited remark by a student sent me reeling. It came out of the blue, like a boxer who is far behind in points on all the judges’ scorecards, but who connects with a...

Personal Note from Terry: This is a story I revised from a post I wrote in 2015. Since subscriptions to my faith & depression blog came after this, you have not seen the full story of Ronnie. I did share a snippet from this incident within a 2018 post. I...

  "I hope you die first!" If someone spoke those words to you, how would you react? What thoughts would roil around in your mind? Most folks consider it a selfish, rude statement at best, or a hateful, spiteful remark at worst. Typically, you do not feel warm...

By Emily Maurits Note: I (Terry) came across this practical blog a few days ago and wanted to share it with you. See Emily's bio and website information at the end of this post. What she writes stems from personal experience. She says, "Two of my closest family...

Three days ago, as I pumped gas into my car in mid-morning, I cried, tears streaming down my cheeks and onto the pavement. Before I tell you why, I'll back up and describe how the day began.   An Inside/Outside Contrast Sunrise birthed a new day, spraying rays...