Tag Archives: Bible Study

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Elder Mark A. Moore, Jr. & Other Black Church Leaders Should Be Careful About Elevating Scripture Above Therapy Following Suicides of Kate Spade & Anthony Bourdain…

Hello World,

I really hadn’t planned to post this morning because I’ve been out of town for a week and need to focus on returning to the more rudimentary rhythms of life. In other words, I’m readying myself to return to work tomorrow after a week off! But when I saw a Facebook friend’s post about a black church leader Elder Mark Moore Jr.’s Facebook commentary regarding Bible study and therapy, I knew I needed to weigh in about this very timely topic. Below is what he said…

I understand what Elder Moore is trying to say I guess, but in my experience and from everything I’ve read, the Black Church, historically, has turned to Bible study and prayer OVER therapy during a mental health crisis to its detriment. Here a few excerpts of articles I’ve found to support that premise…

From my very own blog:

‘Pain in the Pews’ Conference Highlights Mental Health & Ministry This Saturday!

Excerpt:  Do you feel like the church, specifically the Black Church, has appropriately addressed mental health and ministry? Please explain your answer.

No, I don’t think so. I think that historically, we have been taught just to “pray about it” – which, I agree wholeheartedly that we should pray about everything. However, it cannot stop there. If Sister Mary comes and says that she is suffering from depression and having suicidal thoughts, prayer along with ensuring that Sister Mary gets professional help is what is going to help to heal her. If someone says I have a tightness in my chest and my left arm is going numb, we are certainly going to pray, but someone is going to/should say “you need to go see a doctor.” The same advice given to someone with a physical ailment should be given when someone has a mental or emotional issue. That is not always the case in the Black Church.

Former Child Caretaker Dr. Sheila D. Williams Uses Background to Help Others With Mental Illness…

Excerpt:  How prevalent is mental illness in the black community, and what can the Black Church do to support mental health awareness and treatment? 

Within the black community, the subject of mental illness is still very taboo, unfortunately. There are many people within the black community who have undiagnosed mental illness or have been diagnosed with a mental illness, but chose not to take medication or get therapy. These individuals, unfortunately, are suffering in silence. By failing to see a mental health professional, to follow up with treatment or refusing to take prescribed psychotropic medications, their mental illness not only affects them, but it affects their families, loved ones and the entire community.

As a Christian woman, I have a strong faith, and believe in God and the power of prayer. However, at times in the Black Church we fail to acknowledge and expound upon the importance of physical and mental health. Although prayer and motivation are important, and I personally know the benefits of each, it is also important for the Black Church to encourage and promote mental health awareness. We often seek the help and advice of medical physicians, but we fail to seek that same help and assistance from mental health professionals when our emotional and psychological well-being is in jeopardy. I feel it a responsibility of all of us to promote and encourage 360 degrees of wellness, and this includes our mental health.

From The Huffington Post:

Gospel Singer Tasha Cobbs Says Black Church Can Help With Depression

Excerpt:  Cobbs was diagnosed with depression after attending her first therapy consultation, where she discussed her various symptoms. Now, the singer says she still attends therapy sessions once every month to make sure she stays “connected” with her therapist.

While there is a stigma attached to mental health issues in the black community and it is often viewed as a taboo topic to even discuss, Cobbs believes the issue should be considered a health priority — similar to other serious medical conditions.

“I think when you say ‘mental health,’ automatically people think ‘I’m not crazy,’ because we haven’t put a definition to exactly what we’re saying,” she said. “I believe when you say ‘it’s a mental health issue,’ it’s like having diabetes or something’s wrong with my toes or whatever the case is — it’s a medical condition and it can be dealt with. Just like you can manage a broken finger, you can manage mental health issues. I am a living witness that you can be freed and you can be cured and healed from it, but you have to first acknowledge that it exists.”

The suicides of Kate Spade earlier this month followed by Anthony Bourdain days later demonstrated in a dramatic way that no one, no matter the person’s social standing, celebrity status and wealth, is immune from mental health crises. I’m not discounting all of the people who don’t have a platform and suffer in the same way but because of the platforms of Spade and Bourdain, more people, I imagine, are paying attention to mental health issues.

As Elder Moore said, I do believe that Jesus still heals today but we cannot predict how He will heal and we have to use every resource available to facilitate that healing. I believe God has equipped some therapists and uses them to heal their patients. And some Christian therapists use Scripture in addressing mental health diagnoses. As my father was trained as a therapist and as a minister, I’ve never took part in the stigma about seeking counseling when needed. Bible study and prayer are indispensable tools that all should employ in health and wellness but they are not the only tools that God approves of and uses. I hope that more Black Church leaders come to this realization.

Alright, I think I’ve said all that I care to say except to point out I think that mental health issues are so hard for some people to grasp because the issues take place in the brain which none of us can physically see. But as Tasha Cobbs said, having a mental issue issue is just as debilitating as a physical issue. If someone has broken their leg in a car accident for example, you’re not going to advise that person to crack open a Bible and recite Scripture. I mean you can do it and it could be helpful, but you also need to get to a hospital. A mental health issue should be treated similarly. If someone you know is exhibiting suicidal tendencies, seek the help of a mental health professional and all the while you can be recalling Scripture and praying as you do it.

And below is a Scripture that applies to this post:

“Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.”  Proverbs 11:14

Do you feel that the Black Church elevates Bible study and prayer over therapy and medication when it comes to mental health crises?

Any thoughts?

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Believe, NIV – NEW BOOK ALERT!!! (GIVEAWAY!!!)

Hello World,

It’s hard to believe that the first month of this New Year, 2015, is almost gone. Although Photosome of us may have faltered a bit on our resolutions or goals or given them up altogether already, it is still early enough in the year to get back on your plan!

If reading the Bible more is one of your goals and or resolutions, maybe seeing the Bible in a fresh way could help get you more excited about reading God’s word. Zondervan recently released “Believe, NIV: Living the Story of the Bible to Become Like Jesus” a topical abridgement of the Bible designed to help readers discover 30 key beliefs, practices and virtues of the Christian faith. With Randy Frazee, senior minister of Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas, as its editor, “Believe, NIV” is organized in 30 chapters that address three questions: “What do I believe?”, “What should I do?” and “Who am I becoming?” (Confession: This format makes the Bible an approachable book versus the 66 books that I should have read all the way through by now!)

In the first section which is under the heading “What do I believe?”, you can learn more about 10 areas including Personal God, Salvation and Eternity. In the chapter Personal God, you are introduced to David, a poet, singer, shepherd, warrior and king, who described what it means to have a personal relationship with God. He marvels that, “Your eyes saw my unformed body, all the days ordained for me were written in your book.” I’ve seen that verse, Psalm 139:16, before, but it still hard to fathom that God has a colossal heavenly library that literally contains the books of the lives of the billions of people that inhabit this world! As an example that God knows when the books of our lives begin and end, Hezekiah, the king, was also included in the chapter Personal God. At 38 years old, he got sick and was about to die. However, since Hezekiah had a personal relationship with God, he prayed, asking God for more time to live. God heard his request and added 15 more years to his life! I remember when I was a little girl (if I am remembering correctly) this woman who had cancer at my church, shared that she prayed to be able to raise her children. She eventually did die from cancer, but she was able to raise her children until they became adults…

“What should I do?” is the title of the second section which incorporates 10 themes including Bible Study, Single-Mindedness and Giving My Resources. I learned some information I frankly did not know before while reading the chapter Bible Study. (I hope my father does not read this post!) Did you know that Moses is thought to be the author of the first five books of the Old Testament? Also, prior to Moses, the word of God was simply verbally communicated from one generation to the next! Here is the another piece of important information that I missed: Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible. Also, the entire chapter is devoted the benefits of reading and studying the Bible. Here are three of the verses: “I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches” Psalm 119:4, “Your statutes are my delight; they are my counselors” Psalm 119: 24, and “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path” Psalm 119:105.

The third and final section is entitled “Who am I becoming?” Love, Self-Control and Humility are three of the 10 topics covered in this section. I especially gravitated to the Self-Control section because if you have ever been a passenger in my car, you know this is an area that I need to work on. Thankfully, the word of God has many examples of what happens when you fail to control yourself. The life of Samson, who struggled with sexual self-control, is illuminated in this section. As a result of his lack of self-control, Samson lost the amazing physical strength given to him by God and was blinded. Samson’s life is compared with the life of Joseph, who had plenty of reasons to lose control, but ultimately he did not. Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, he was wrongfully accused, and he was jailed for a crime he did not commit. Still, he continued to trust God and control himself and was placed in a position of authority as a result.

Below is a video about “Believe, NIV.”

“Believe, NIV,” has a companion book “Think, Act, Be Like Jesus,” which was released jointly with “Believe, NIV.” Written by Randy Frazee with Robert Noland, this book explains how to grown as a follower of Christ and become more like him in our thinking, actions and character. This book can be read with “Believe, NIV” or separately as an individual study.

So what do you think of this new approach to the Bible? Guess what? You can check it out for yourself! I partnered with Zondervan to give away three copies of  “Believe, NIV: Living the Story of the Bible to Become Like Jesus” All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post and share this blog post in social media whether it be a Facebook post, Twitter, etc. To prove that you shared this blog post, send a screen shot to me at jacqueline@aftertheatlarcall.com or just point it out to me if you are one of my Facebook friends or if you follow me on Twitter. The first three people to meet these requirements will receive a free copy of “Believe, NIV!”

Any thoughts?

Note: I did receive a free review copy of “Believe, NIV” but all of the opinions expressed are my own:) .

 

 

 

 

 

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God Can Speak Through Cute Boys – The Post, Not the Chapter!

Hello World!!!

Last Wednesday during Bible Study, my Bible Study teacher asked all of us a question that he obviously meant for us to ponder. “What have you searched for your whole life?” Even after a minute or so, no one said anything. Since no one volunteered to answer the question, he asked us to answer the question one by one around the whole table.

As each person answered the question, I wondered what I was going to say when he finally got to me. By the time he looked at me, I still had nothing to say, so I asked him a question.
“What do you mean by ‘searched for your whole life,'” I said, hoping to deflect the question.
“What do you think it means,” he retorted.
“Hmm,” I said before I answered. “Well, if you mean, what have I been interested in for most of my life, I can tell you that,” I offered. “I don’t know if I have been necessarily searching for anything my whole life.”
“Okay,” he said.
“Well, when I was six years old or so, I knew that I wanted to be writer,” I said. “Shortly after that, I liked this little boy in my first grade class named ‘Jimmy,’ and I knew from then on that I liked boys too. And after I graduated college, I became interested in God.”
Everyone chuckled! Yeah, I’m an amateur, very amateur, comedian!

So there you have it. Writing, Boys & God. Even today and to my sometime dismay, I find myself thinking about one of those three categories, if you will, most of the time. (You’re probably laughing or at least smiling as you read this. Hopefully…)

But the really funny thing is because God is God and He is all knowing, He knew how to get my attention in 1996 when I decided to rededicate my life to Jesus Christ just after graduating from college. He managed to combine all three of my loves to solidify my seedling faith. Shortly after my altar call experience (you can read about my experience on the What page of this blog. Check the excerpt link. ), Tupac Shakur, the best rapper ever, was shot on my birthday. (I still have a life-sized poster of him in my office. The image of which appears in this post!) Tragically, about a week later, he died. I decided I wanted to write a novel based on the life of the rapper, but I realized that I knew very little about the history of rap and hip hop. A friend of mine introduced me to a friend of his who was virtually a walking encyclopedia about rap and hip hop. At a downtown Atlanta coffeehouse one night, we discussed the history of rap and hip hop while I took notes. And although I was listening to him, I couldn’t help but notice his milk chocolate skin,  curly black hair and deep voice. And later in the conversation, I discovered he was a Christian – and a real one at that – like my parents even. I mean he actually read the Bible, prayed, submitted his life to God and went to church on a regular basis. Yep, I had a big ole crush by the end of the night.

And while we were never “boyfriend and girlfriend,” we went out on a few dates. During those dates, he got his “witness” on, and we discussed what having a personal relationship with God looked like, how to pray and have a regular devotional time, and how to be a cool Christian. I was so gone! (That means, I was really diggin’ him for real!”) My parents were amazed to find me at the kitchen table reading the Bible from time to time when I used to sleep through the sermons at church almost each and every Sunday for years- little did they know that I was reading up to debate scripture on dates! I was still living at home then.)

Eventually though, he went on a “woman fast” and decided to stop going on dates with several women, including me, for a while. (Okay, I really thought he was just riding with me, but that’s another story for another day.) However, we remained cordial, and he took me to a Christian hip hop convention, CRU-VENTION ’97, where I discovered that he wasn’t the only man out there who was cute, had swagger and actually sold out to Jesus Christ! It was crazy. And I decided then, that I could really follow Jesus – no turning back, no turning back (A take off on the hymn “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus.”)

This story, in its more descriptive and eloquent entirety, is told in the chapter, “God Can Speak Through Cute Boys” in the book “After the Altar Call: A Young Black Woman’s Journey of Faith.” You can read it once the book is published. Again, does anyone have the hook up?

Any thoughts?

P.S. I never did write that novel based on Tupac Shakur, but as I said before, as I have a life-sized poster of him in my office, he is never far from my memory.  R.I.P. Tupac! 1971-1996