Amanda Lewallen

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Archives for June 2021

Hope & Joy After Trauma

Guest Post by Alyssa Falkenstein Hope. It’s often defined as an expectation or desire, but biblically hope is a confident…
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It is well with my soul. The words to this timel

It is well with my soul. The words to this timeless hymn were written by a man who had just lost his four daughters in a shipwreck. I cannot imagine the depths of his pain, or the strength it took to claim this promise in the midst of it, but this story is a powerful example that we can claim our promise too. No matter the circumstance, no matter how broken we may be, it is ours for the taking.
We can write it, we can sing it, we can let it settle in deep. He is faithful and good, come what may, in sorrow and in joy, independent of any circumstance. The peace is in His presence. It is well.
#emotionallyhealthyspirituality #christianmentalhealth #healingtrauma #healinganxiety #healingptsd #abusehealing #cptsd #cptsdhealing #seekingchrist #soulcare #mentalhealthmatters #faithandmentalhealth #hopewriters #hopewriterlife #learningtobeloved #healingfromabuse

He is Right Now. Take a deep breath because Resurr

He is Right Now. Take a deep breath because Resurrection and Life apply to this moment. All our present heartaches are already bound up in Him so we don't have to wait for the End of the story because He is Life and it is His story. You (and me) are held and so very loved today. #emotionallyhealthyspirituality #christianmentalhealth #faithandmentalhealth #mentalhealthmatters #cptsd #cptsdrecovery #hopewriters #hopewriterlife #learningtobeloved #lifeaftertrauma #healingfromabuse #seekingchrist

No matter how much we worry. No matter how much w

No matter how much we worry. No matter how much we fear. No matter how much we hurt. "I will heal your wounds," declares the Lord. Jeremiah 30:17 #christianmentalhealth #faithandmentalhealth #emotionallyhealthyspirituality #cptsdrecovery #ptsd #traumahealing #abusehealing #seekingchrist #soulcare #hopewriters #hopewriterlife

New year, new you? Are you entering 2022 determin

New year, new you? Are you entering 2022 determined to make changes? Maybe the familiar early January mix of hope and trepidation still has you firmly in its grip. Worship more
Eat better
Read more
Sleep more
Worry less
Work out These are all good changes are they’re on my list too. But what if we moved from resolutions to deeply sitting in the revelation that: Old you -- with your lack of faith, missed workouts, empty fast food bags, unhealed wounds, and dusty Bible -- Your Creator believes that old you was worth dying for. #christianmentalhealth #emotionallyhealthyspirituality #faithandmentalhealth #traumarecovery #cptsdrecovery #cptsd #resolutions #seekingchrist #soulcare #newyearnewyou #newyears2022 #hopewriters #hopewriterlife

My teenage son decided that he wanted to learn Ice

My teenage son decided that he wanted to learn Icelandic as his high school foreign language and homeschooling gives us the freedom to be a little unconventional, so Icelandic it is. He was recently telling me about the greeting above: Hvað segirðu gott? It means “how are you?” but the literal translation is something like “what say you good about today?” It struck me that within this phrase is the foundational assumption that there is something good. That there is always good to tell and that we should ask each other about it and recall it and retell it. So maybe at the end of a long year, which came right on the heels of another long year -- a stretch of time filled with grief, loss, uncertainty, and struggle -- maybe we could take something from this simple greeting. Hvað segirðu gott?
What good say you? #emotionallyhealthyspirituality #christianmentalhealth #faithandmentalhealth #newyearseve #icelandic #griefwork #traumawork #cptsdrecovery #complextrauma

Are you still celebrating? Sometimes we're too qu

Are you still celebrating? Sometimes we're too quick to box up Christmas and move on to resolutions. Maybe you can't do 12 days worth, but what if we made an effort to linger in the joy & wonder this year? I always hate to let it go. #christmas2021 #12daysofchristmas #celebrate #joytotheworld #hopewriters #christtheking #hopewriterlife #lightinthedarkness #linger

For the childhood trauma survivor at Christmas: T

For the childhood trauma survivor at Christmas: Trauma is heavy all the time, but it can be especially so during the holidays. Family expectations and memories can bring up painful wounds and hard, complex decisions about how and where to spend our time and energy. It can feel like the whole, festive world can’t possibly understand the pain that comes along with being so broken. The truth is, HIs love undoes me about this time every year. Family. Traditions. Memory. Old pain and new hope mingled together in a manger. The whole story of grief and healing contained in the glory of God made man always steals my breath away. The wise men brought their gifts, the angels brought their joy, and the shepherds brought their awe and maybe you’re feeling a little short on all three this year. But there’s one sure way to find favor with the Savior -- bring your whole, tender self to His feet. He’s already caught every tear. Immanuel means God is with us, and I wonder if I’ve ever understood it. He is God, not just among us, but -with-. He’s a living, breathing, weeping God who has done everything possible to repair the damage being in this world has done to us. He’s the God of the hard stuff. Whatever your Christmas looks like, joy belongs to you too. #christianmentalhealth #faithandmentalhealth #traumawork #cptsd #abuserecovery #abusehealing #cptsdhealing #griefwork #advent2021 #christmas2021 #christiscoming #comeasyouare #immanuel #lightinthedarkness #Heisforyou #hopewriters #hopewriterlife

May joy catch you and enfold you in all it's unexp

May joy catch you and enfold you in all it's unexpected, glorious ways. #wisemen #christmas2021 #advent2021 #christmaswithtoddlers #joy #magi #hopewriters #hopewriterlife

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