Faith in Life

Christmas Hope and Your Suffering: Advent Devotional

Hope can feel hard to come by during the holidays, especially when you’re wracked with pain or weighed down with grief. Yes, it might be “the most wonderful time of the year” for some. But for others, it’s a season when wonderful times seem both far behind and far beyond them. Perhaps you fall into this latter category. If so, the incarnation may not seem like a relevant consolation. But consider this comforting truth as you weep and lament: Jesus wasn’t born to fail but to prove himself faithful.
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5 months ago

Hope + Help for Depression with Ed Welch

In what way does Jesus welcome those who are experiencing depression? Why is it true that "faith can feel good, and faith can feel horrible"? And how does the gospel offer hope to those who fear that they'll stay stuck in the darkness? Ed Welch addresses these questions and more in this new episode of IBCD's Hope + Help Podcast!
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6 months ago

God’s Grace for Mom’s Unmerry Holiday

While the reasons for these seasonal struggles will vary from family to family, the need to depend on God’s sustaining grace remains the same. Thankfully, he doesn’t begrudge your neediness but welcomes it wholeheartedly! God knows that holidays can be hard days—that you can only endure them if he daily bears you up. Here are three specific ways that God ministers his grace to you during your unmerry holiday.
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6 months ago

11 Free Resources on Biblical Lament

Biblical lament is something I've taught, spoken, and written about a number of times, but only recently did I come to realize that I had enough lament-related resources to share in one post! On this page, you'll find a few interviews from the Hope + Help Podcast archives on the topic of lament, as well as a number of articles that will help you to think more deeply about the topic. In addition, this post features two printables—one of which is brand new.
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10 months ago

The Gift and Skill of Praise in Lament

If you don’t tend to associate groaning to God with giving Him thanks, you’re not the only one. I confess there have been times when praising the Lord was nowhere near the top of my mind in my sorrow. But over the years, the Spirit has helped me to better understand these two contrasting ways of addressing our Heavenly Father—to see that we needn’t sacrifice praise on the altar of lament (or vice versa). Even our most desperate cries can be “couched in praise,” just as “[in] the context of praise, lament and even protest can be an important function of faith.”
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11 months ago

Depression and Motherhood: Parenting with Ginger Hubbard

"Are you a mom struggling with feelings of hopelessness and anxiety? Would you like biblical guidance and practical help for battling depression from someone who’s been there and understands? Join Ginger Hubbard and Katy Morgan, along with special guest Christine Chappell, as they discuss how we can abide in Christ and lean on him to sustain us through seasons of darkness."
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1 year ago

Voices of Encouragement • Video Compilation

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, we hear closing remarks from Christine as well as encouraging words from a variety of respected authors, bible teachers, pastors, and experienced biblical counselors such as Brad Bigney, Cameron Cole, John Crotts, Iain Duguid, David & Krista Dunham, Zack Eswine, Gloria Furman, Alasdair Groves, Nancy Guthrie, Brad Hambrick, Marty Machowski, Esther Smith, Curtis Solomon, Paul Tautges, Steve Viars, Mark Vroegop, Ed Welch, Lauren Whitman, and Rush Witt.
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1 year ago

You Lamented—Now What?

“There’s a lot of talk about how to lament these days, but what do we do after—what comes next?” My friend’s question was intriguing. He was right to identify the need for extended reflection. After all, the moments following lament are just as important as the pain-pressed prayers themselves. We must choose to do something next, so what will it be? Withdraw in self-pity? Lash out at loved ones? Self-medicate with creature comforts? Give ourselves over to the futility of restlessness or the fruitlessness of resignation? We need wisdom, lest the choices we make do more harm than good. Because all of life is lived before God, how we move forward from lament truly matters. So what wisdom does he offer to us in these fragile and frustrated moments?
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1 year ago

Prodigal Children with Camille Cates

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, Camille reflects on the heartbreak of grieving over a wayward child and how God has mercifully met her in the midst of her sorrow.
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1 year ago

Stillbirth with Jackie Gibson

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, Jackie reflects on the stillbirth of her daughter and recounts how God mercifully met her in the midst of her grief.
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1 year ago

Free Resources for Depressed Moms

This post contains articles, audios, videos, and downloads which were published during the launch of Midnight Mercies. All of these resources are free to access and available to freely share.
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1 year ago

Chronic Illness with Vaneetha Risner

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, Vaneetha reflects on her progressive journey through chronic illness and remembers how God has mercifully met her in the midst of her limitations in motherhood.
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1 year ago

Parenting Challenges with Sarah Walton

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, Sarah reflects on her journey through traumatic parenting challenges and shares how God has mercifully met her in the midst of them.
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1 year ago

Unexpected Divorce with Shannon McCoy

In this video recording from the 2023 Midnight Mercies Virtual Summit, Shannon reflects on her journey through depression in the wake of divorce and shares how God mercifully met her in the midst of it.
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1 year ago

Hope + Help for Shame & Regret with Ed Welch

In this episode of the Hope + Help Podcast, host Christine Chappell interviews Ed Welch about his book, A Small Book about Why We Hide: How Jesus Rescues Us from Insecurity, Regret, Failure, and Shame. 
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3 years ago

Top 5 Friday: Christian Books on Grief

In this replay, I share my Top 5 Christian books on grief, discussing WHO they're for, WHY I think they're helpful, and WHEN to recommend them. Special thanks to this week's top viewers (Cynthia, Maree, & Ruth) for making the broadcast conversational. And congratulations to Cynthia, who won this week's book giveaway by engaging with the most comments during the livestream.
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4 years ago

Top 5 Friday: Books on One-Another Ministry

In this broadcast, I share my Top 5 books on one-another ministry. These recommendations are for those who desire to learn more about one-another ministry (who/what/where/when/why/ & how,) grow in their ability to help people both BIBLICALLY and COMPASSIONATELY, and chat about helpful biblical resources that offer gospel hope and help for some of life's most challenging problems—like caring for others well!
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4 years ago

Top 5 Friday: Christian Books on Depression

In this broadcast, I share my top 5 favorite books that approach the experience of depression from a biblical perspective, explaining HOW they've ministered to me in the past, WHY I think they're helpful, WHO to recommend them to, and WHEN (hint: wise timing is both compassionate and important!)
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4 years ago