Healthy Faith is Healing Faith

You may be asking, “How can faith be unhealthy?” I am so glad you asked!

Faith that requires denial of feelings and thoughts as well as encourages a person to lose a sense of self is an unhealty faith. This type of act is known as spiritual bypass. Someone can do this to him or herself as well as receive this act. Regardless of how it is done, it is damaging.

While completing the act on oneself is damaging, the person is a willing participant (albeit, the person may be doing it unconsciously). However, when it is done toward someone, the person receiving the act is not a willing participant and may be left feeling dismissed, unheard, shamed, or more.

To have a healthy faith that leads to a healing faith, we must understand what a healthy faith encompasses, its characteristics, and its outcomes. That is the goal of this website and all its contents. To bring you to a healthy faith that leads to a healing faith.

Recommended Resources:

Books:

Trauma-Sensitive Theology: Thinking Theologically in the Era of Trauma

The Struggle is Real: How to Care for Mental and Relational Health Needs in the Church

Trauma in the Pews

The Soul of Shame

The Soul of Desire

The Deepest Place

Emotionally Healhty Spirituality

The Deconstruction of Christianity: What it is, Why it’s destructive, and how to respond

Forgiveness after Trauma: A path to finding healing and empowerment

Podcasts:

Bodies Behind the Bus with Peri defining and identifying spiritual bypass

Therapy and Theology - Lysa Terkeurst

Proverbs 31 Ministries - Lysa Terkeurst

Sacred Intersections - Paula Swindle

The Best of You - Allison Cook

The Power of Being Known - Curt Thompson

Blogs:

Peri’s guest blog where she discusses the value of stillness on Brianna Barrett’s website

Articles:

Don’t Spiritually Bypass your Church-Hurt Neighbor by Peri Gilbert-Reed with Christianity Today

  • There is no easy answer to this. Some schools of thought will argue they do not belong together. Others believe they can work together, but there needs to be balance. One resource for a more thorough answer to this can be found in Psychology and Christianity: Five Views.

  • The Bible addresses the human condition. It speaks to heartache, sadness, and more. Paul even spoke of having “thorns in the flesh” that God did not take away. We can look to scripture as a source of support when we are facing pain. However, just as God has placed medical doctors on this earth to help heart conditions, so he has placed counselors to help with soul conditions. Again, it is about balance.

  • There are websites such as the American Association of Christian Counselors where you can search for a Christian Counselor in your area. However, you can also call counselors in your area and ask if they work from a faith-based perspective.

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