Every day, millions of individuals are hurting. So many people are silently fighting an inner battle. Yet, mental health is in the headlines daily. And as a church, we need to be in the conversation. Jesus cared for many who struggled with mental health, and His example of caring, supporting, and healing is one we can and should follow.
Click a topic below to find a starting place for resources about the topic:
Depression
Anxiety
Co-Dependency
Grief
Addiction
Suicide & Self Harm
Social Anxiety
DEPRESSION
Everyone will experience sadness in life, but not everyone will go through depression. Depression is not a choice. Yes, sometimes, choices made could lead someone down that path. But, many times, depression can result from things out of someone’s control, and sometimes, it seems like depression happens for no reason. In the message linked below, Care Pastor Amy Sargent (LMFT and M.Th.) shares her journey of depression and how the not-far-off HOPE that exists can be experienced through Jesus and the Holy Spirit living in us.
- Full Service - CF Website
- Message - YouTube
Books
Recommended - General
- Out of the Cave (Chris Hodges)
- Depression, Anxiety and the Christian Life (Michael Lundy)
- Christianity and Depression (Tasia Scrutton)
Recommended - Specific to Depression/Suicide
- Coping with Depression (Dr. Siang-Yang Tan, John Ortberg)
- Dark Clouds, Silver Linings (Archibald Hart)
- The Feeling Good Handbook (David Burns)
- Depression: Coping and Caring (Dr. Archibald D. Hart )
- Happiness is a Choice: The Symptoms, Causes, and Cures of Depression (Frank Minirth & Paul Meier)
- Overcoming Depression: The Victory Over the Darkness Series (Neil Anderson)
- In the Shadow of God's Wings: Grace In The Midst Of Depression (Susan Gregg-Schroeder)
- Strength for the Journey: A Biblical Perspective On Discouragement And Depression (James P Porowski)
- Unmasking Male Depression: Recognizing the Root Cause to Many Problem Behaviors Such as Anger, Resentment, Abusiveness, Silence, Addictions, and Sexual Compulsiveness (Dr. Archibald Hart )
- Beauty in the Browns: Walking with Christ in the Darkness of Depression (Paul Asay)
- When the Darkness Will Not Lift: Doing what we can While we Wait for God-- and Joy (John Piper)
- Depression, Anxiety and The Christian Life: Practical Wisdom from Richard Baxter (Michael Lundy)
- A Woman’s Guide to Overcoming Depression (Archibald Hart & Catherine Hart Weber)
- Hope in the Midst of Depression: How to Embrace Life Again (Mary Southerland)
- Finding Your Way after the Suicide of Someone You Love (David Biebel & Suzanne Foster)
- It’s OK That You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture that Doesn’t Understand (Megan Devine)
Cost-Free Resources for Combatting Depression
For a list of cost free solutions to resources in dealing with depression, please click here.
ANXIETY
Anxiety. It’s everywhere and in everything. Triggers. Fear. Worry. Panic. Big and small. When anxiety hits, our ability to “think” gets lost and replaced with a need to act. Pastor John Orozco asks and answers the question, "Where is Jesus in all of this?" in the message linked below.
- Full Service - CF Website
- Message - YouTube
Books
Recommended - General
- Get Out of Your Head: Stopping the Spiral of Toxic Thoughts (Jennie Allen)
- Running Scared: Fear, Worry and the God of Rest (Edward Welch, etc)
- Try Softer: A Fresh Approach to Move Us out of Anxiety, Stress and Survival Mode-- and into a Life of Connection and Joy (Aundi Kolber)
Recommended - Specific Anxiety Disorders
- Getting Control: Overcoming Obsessions And Compulsions (Lee Baer)
- When in Doubt, Make Belief: An OCD-Inspired Approach To Living With Uncertainty (Jeff Bell)
- The Anxiety & Phobia Workbook (Edmund Bourne)
- The Anxiety Cure (Archibald Hart, Ph.D.)
- The Worry Control Workbook (Mary Ellen Copeland)
- An End to Panic: Breakthrough Techniques for Overcoming Panic Disorder (Elke Zuercher-White, Ph.D)
- The Wellness Book: The Comprehensive Guide to Maintaining Health and Treating Stress-Related Illness (Herbert Benson & Eileen Stuart)
- Walking on Water When You Feel Like You’re Drowning: Finding Hope in Life’s Darkest Moments (Tommy Nelson & Steve Leavitt)
- My Name is Hope: Anxiety, Depression, and Life after Melancholy (Mark Comer)
- Be Anxious for Nothing: The Art of Casting Your Cares and Resting in God (Joyce Meyer)
- Anxiety Gone: Three C’s of Anxiety Recovery (Stanley Hibbs)
- Overcoming Panic Attacks: Practical, biblically-based help for those who suffer from panic attacks and irrational fears (Ray Comfort)
Podcasts
- The Bible’s Step by Step Cure for Anxiety
- Gratitude, the Great Antidote
- Finding Healing from Ourselves
- 10 Keys to a Contented Heart
- Cleaning up the Mental Mess with Dr. Caroline Leaf
- Grateful for Grief with Stephen Colbert
Video Bible Studies via Right Now Media
CO-DEPENDENCY
We all can struggle with co-dependency from time to time. For many of us, though, it is debilitating. In the message linked below, Chris Stockhaus talks about the habits, the lies, the practical steps, and the truth needed to find the healthy love of self that Jesus wants for us.
- Full Service - CF Website
- Message - YouTube
Practical Steps for Combatting Co-Dependent Tendencies
- Practice saying the word no.
- When you start to think of what others need, stop and consider what you need first.
- Consistently acknowledge that you’re not responsible for fixing anyone; they have to do that themselves.
- You can’t make another person feel a certain way – and they can’t make you feel a certain way- you are in charge of your own emotions.
- Develop and embrace your own personality. Take up hobbies and find things you enjoy doing. Find and meet your own expectations, not other people’s expectations.
- Try not to judge others, and try not to think others are judging you.
Co-Dependency Groups
In addition to practical tips, we recommend you join a co-dependency anonymous group. We have some groups at Cornerstone Fellowship, or there may be a great co-dependency group outside of CF but in your community. We also recommend counseling or therapy. There are professionals in your area who are trained to help you develop a Gospel-centered healthy view of self that will help you combat your co-dependent tendencies.
Books
Recommended - General
Sometimes, co-dependency can be viewed as an addiction to relationships.
- Untangling Relationships (Pat Springle)
- Codependent No More: How to Stop Controlling Others and Start Caring for Yourself (Melodie Beattie)
Recommended - Specific Co-dependency Struggles
- Beyond Co-dependency: and Getting Better All the Time (Melody Beattie)
- The Language of Letting Go: Daily Meditations on Codependency (Melody Beattie)
- Conquering Codependency: A Christ-centered 12 Step Process (Pat Springle)
- Untangling Relationships: A Christian Perspective On Co-Dependence (Pat Springle)
- The Christian Codependence Recovery Workbook: From Surviving to Significance (Stephanie Tucker)
- Love is a Choice: The Definitive Book on Letting Go of Unhealthy Relationships (Robert Hemfelt, Frank Minirth & Paul Meier)
GRIEF
Grief is complicated. Unresolved grief can affect every area of our lives, from our mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. In the message linked below, Pastor Diane Rutledge dissects the complexity of working in and through personal grief, supporting someone going through grief, and how Jesus' words and actions can move someone toward hope, health, and healing.
- Full Service - CF Website
- Message - YouTube
Helpful Ways to Process Grief
- Support Groups - Attending a support group at a local church or hospice facility. Many support groups today offer virtual groups.
- Sleep and Self-care - It may be difficult to find healthy routines as you are grieving, but taking time to care for yourself and get rest is important. What is something you can do that you enjoy? Ex. Going for walks, taking time off from work, listening to music, reading a book, cooking a meal, going out for coffee, taking a bath, or watching your favorite show. Take time to do things that give your heart and mind rest but also things that you truly enjoy.
- Say Goodbye - Perhaps you did not get a chance to say goodbye to your loved one. This experience can leave a void of unfinished business in your heart, soul, and mind. Here are a few examples of how you can take time to say goodbye:
- Journaling and/or writing a letter to the one who passed.
- Acknowledging the loss. Making a post on social media about the loss or writing an obituary can help acknowledge and process your loss.
- Permission to move forward. After loss, grief is a healthy and normal emotion to have, but it can also become a companion that keeps us from moving forward (not forgetting) after our loss. Here are some ideas to help you remember and honor the memory of your loved one while also giving you permission to create new memories and a new routine in your life.
- Find something that reminds you of them and place it somewhere visible in your home.
- Light a candle in their place at significant holidays, anniversaries, and events.
- Remember them often in your thoughts, and don’t be afraid to talk about them in conversations with others.
Books
Recommended - General
- Walking with God through Pain and Suffering (Timothy Keller)
- The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma (Bessel Van Der Kolk)
- What Happened to You? (Oprah Winfrey & Bruce Perry)
Recommended - Specific
Grief
- The Grief Recovery Handbook (John W. James and Russell Friedman)
- Hearing Jesus Speak into Your Sorrow (Nancy Guthrie)
- Life After Loss: Conquering Grief and Finding Hope (Raymond Moody and Dianne Arcangel)
- The Last Thing We Talk About (Joseph Bayly)
- Goodbye for Now: Practical Help and Personal Hope for Those Who Grieve (Welby O’Brien)
- Between Faith and Tears (Kenneth E. Schemmer)
- A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss (Jerry Sittser)
- When Life Hurts: A Three-Fold Path to Healing (Brian C. Stiller)
- All God’s Comfort (Herbert Lockyer)
- Grieving with Hope: Finding Comfort as You Journey through Loss (Samuel Hodges & Kathy Leonard)
- Shattered: Surviving the Loss of a Child (Gary Roe)
- A Grief Observed (C.S. Lewis)
- On Death & Dying (Elisabeth Kubler Ross)
- Recovering from Losses in Life (H. Norman Wright)
- Experiencing Grief (H. Norman Wright)
- When God & Grief Meet: Comfort & Courage for Your Journey (Lynn Eib)
Infertility/Miscarriage
- Grieving the Child I Never Knew (Kathe Wunnenberg)
- Held: 31 Biblical Reflections on God’s Comfort and Care in the Sorrow of Miscarriage (Abbey Wedgeworth)
- We Were Gonna Have a Baby, But We Had an Angel Instead (Pat Schwiebert and Taylor Bills) - Telling young children about the loss of an expected sibling.
- Empty Arms: Hope and Support for Those Who Have Suffered a Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Tubal Pregnancy (Pam Vredevelt)
- Angel Wings: My Story of Love, Faith, Infertility, Surrogacy and Not Giving Up Hope (Stephanie O’Hara)
- Hope Deferred: Heart-Healing Reflections on Reproductive Loss (Nadine Pence Frantz)
- Hannah’s Hope: Seeking God’s Heart in the Midst of Infertility, Miscarriage and Adoption Loss (Jennifer Saake)
- Longing for Motherhood: Holding on to Hope in the Midst of Childlessness (Chelsea Patterson Sobolik)
Podcasts
- This Too Shall Suck- A Fresh Perspective on Grief
- Hope Thru Grief Podcast
- Brené Brown and David Kessler - On Grief and Finding Meaning
Movie
ADDICTION
Addiction is complicated. Not only are the causes, results, and impacts of addiction challenging for an individual facing them, but the ripple effect of addiction also reaches beyond and deep into those surrounding that person. Pastor Steve Ingold and Care Pastor/licensed Therapist Amy Sargent talk about addiction and how Jesus’ words and actions can move someone toward hope, health, and healing in the message linked below.
- Full Service - CF Website
- Message - YouTube
Books
Recommended - General
- Grace for the Afflicted: A Clinical and Biblical Perspective on Mental Illness (Matthew S. Stanford)
- Waiting for Heaven: Freedom from the Incurable Addiction to Self (Larry Crabb)
- The Heart of Addiction (Mark Shaw)
Recommended - Specific Addictions
12-Step Recovery
- The Twelve Steps for Christians
- The Twelve Steps: A Spiritual Journey
- The Life Recovery Devotional: Thirty Meditations from Scripture for Each Step in Recovery (Stephen Arterburn & David Stoop)
Pornography, Sexual Addiction
- False Intimacy: Understanding the Struggle of Sexual Addiction (Harry Schaumburg)
- Escape from Intimacy: Untangling the ``Love'' Addictions: Sex, Romance, Relationships (Anne Wilson Schaef)
- Pure Desire: How One Man’s Triumph Can Help Others Break Free From Sexual Temptation (Ted Roberts)
- Every Heart Restored: A Wife's Guide to Healing in the Wake of a Husband's Sexual Sin (Fred Stoeker)
- Every Man's Battle: Winning the War on Sexual Temptation One Victory at a Time (Stephen Arterburn)
- Every Woman's Battle: Discovering God's Plan for Sexual and Emotional Fulfillment (Shannon Ethridge and Stephen Arterburn)
- Faithful and True (Mark Laaser)
- Love and Betrayal: Stories of Hope to Help you Heal from Your Husband’s Pornography Addiction (Carmel Parker White and Natalie Black Milne)
- Healing the Wounds of Sexual Addiction (Mark Laaser)
- No Stones: Women Redeemed from Sexual Shame (Marnie Ferree)
- Shattered Vows: Hope and Healing for Women Who Have Been Sexually Betrayed (Debra Laaser)
Substance Abuse/Addiction
- Freedom From Addiction: Breaking the Bondage of Addiction and Finding Freedom in Christ (Neil Anderson, Mike & Julia Quarles)
- Conquering Chemical Dependency: A Christ-Centered 12 Step Process (McGee, McCleskey)
- Not God: A History of Alcoholics Anonymous (Ernest Kurtz)
- The Spirituality of Imperfection: Storytelling and the Search for Meaning (Ernest Kurtz)
- Coming Clean: A Story of Faith (Seth Haines)
- Video "Addiction" (HBO)
Food Addiction
- The Satisfied Workbook: A Spiritual Guide to Recovery and Food Freedom (Rhona Epstein)
- Full: Food, Jesus, and the Battle for Satisfaction (Asheritah Ciuciu and Linda Dillow)
- Made to Crave: Satisfying Your Deepest Desire with God, Not Food (Lysa Terkeurst)
- The Monster Within: Facing and Eating Disorder (Cynthia Rowland McClure)
Work & Other Addictions
- Healing Life’s Hidden Addictions: Overcoming the Closet Compulsions that Waste Your Time and Control Your Life (Archibald Hart)
- Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives (Richard Swenson)
Family Affected by Addictions
- Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction (David Sheff)
- The Lost Years: Surviving a Mother and Daughter’s Worst Nightmare (Kristina Wandzilak)
- It Will Never Happen to Me: Growing up with Addiction as Youngsters, Adolescents, Adults (Claudia Black)
Websites
Recommended - General
- Start Your Recovery: Substance Abuse Resources & Support
- Live Another Day: Mental health and substance use resources for people of color
- Detox Local: Mental health and substance use resources specifically for the AAPI (American Asian and Pacific Islander) community
Recommended - Support for the Top 10 Addictions
- Alcoholics Anonymous
- Narcotics Anonymous
- Online Gamers Anonymous
- Screen/Technology Addiction
- Sexual Addictions Anonymous
- Pornography Addicts Anonymous
- Workaholic Anonymous
- Shopping Addiction
- Gambling Addiction
SUICIDE & SELF HARM
Books on Self Harm
- Inside a Cutter’s Mind: Understanding and Helping Those Who Self-Injure (Jerusha Clark and Earl Henslin)
- A Bright Red Scream: Self-Mutilation and the Language of Pain (Marilee Strong)
- The Parent’s Guide to Self Harm: What Parents Need to Know (Jane Smith)
- Stopping the Pain: A Workbook for Teens who Cut and Self Inure (Lawrence Shapiro)
- Cutting: Understanding and Overcoming Self-Mutilation (Steven Levenkron)
- Managing Negative Emotions: How to Deal with Anger, Anxiety and Irritation anywhere and anytime (Byron Neal)
Podcasts on Self Harm
- The Psychology of Self-Injury: Exploring Self-Harm & Mental Health (Nicholas Westers)
- Let’s Talk About Self-Harm (Shari Lewison-Frisch)
Websites
Apps
- The DistrACT App
Books on Suicide
- The Opposite of Depression: What My Work with Suicidal Patients has Taught Me About Life, Hope and How to Flourish (David Carreon)
- Saving ourselves from Suicide - Before and After: How to Ask for Help, Recognize Warning Signs and Navigate Grief (Linda Pacha)
- I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die: Finding Hope in the Darkness of Depression (Sarah Robinson)
- Reasons to Stay Alive (Matt Haig)
- A Parent’s Guide to Prevent Suicide in your Loved One (Tatiana Falcone)
- Cracked, Not Broken: Surviving and Thriving after a Suicide Attempt (Kevin Hines)
- Aftermath: Picking up the Pieces after a Suicide (Gary Roe)
- Gracious Grief After Suicide Loss: Feel God’s Love after the Worst Day of Your Life (Kevin Skellett)
- Finding Your Way after the Suicide of Someone You Love (David Biebel & Suzanne Foster)
- Grieving a Suicide: A Loved One’s Search for Comfort, Answers and Hope (Albert Hsu)
- Melissa: A Father’s Lessons from a Daughter’s Suicide (Frank Page)
- Shattered: Surviving the loss of a Child (Gary Roe)
- Aftershock: Help, Hope and Healing in the Wake of Suicide (David Cox & Candy Arrington)
- Too Soon to Say Goodbye: Healing and Hope for Victims and Survivors of Suicide (Susan Titus Osborn, Karen Kosman and Jeenie Gordon)
- It’s OK that You’re Not OK: Meeting Grief and Loss in a Culture that Doesn’t Understand (Megan Devine)
Podcasts
- Before You Kill Yourself (Leo Flowers)
- Life Matters (Zero Suicide Alliance)
- Reach In, Reach Out (International Association for Suicide Prevention)
- You’re Not Finished (Brittany Franklin)
- Writing on the Walls (Rob Hlavaty)
Apps
- Virtual Hope Box
- notOK
- Suicide Safe
- Suicide Safety Plan
Websites
- https://sprc.org/
- https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/suicide-prevention
- https://www.cdc.gov/suicide/index.html
SOCIAL ANXIETY
Books:
- Thriving with Social Anxiety by Hattie Cooper
- How to Be Yourself: Quiet Your Inner Critic and Rise Above Social Anxiety by Ellen Hendriksen
- Stop Overthinking: 23 Techniques to Relieve Stress, Stop Negative Spirals, Declutter Your Mind and Focus on the Present by Nick Trenton
- Winning the War in Your Mind: Change your Thinking, Change Your Life by Craig Groeschel
- Get Out of Your Head: Stopping the Spiral of Toxic Thoughts by Jennie Allen
- Social Anxiety Relief for Teens: A step-by-step cbt guide to feel confident & comfortable in any situation by Bridget Flynn Walker
- Anxiety…….The Happiness Trap: How to stop Struggling and Start Living by: Russ Harris
- The Anxiety Workbook by John Arden
Websites:
Podcasts:
- Social Anxiety Solutions
- The Social Anxiety Society
- The Anxiety Podcast
- Overcoming Anxiety through Faith