Personal Growth

A loved one has walked out on you. A car crash has left you disabled and in constant pain. You or a family member just received a serious medical diagnosis. Even worse, perhaps you've just returned from a funeral. How do you begin to piece your life...

Do past failures still trouble you? Perhaps regret over a mistake, the betrayal of someone close to you, an undone task, an angry outburst has left you feeling uneasy. You wonder if God really does forgive you. Sometimes he seems like a dark cloud...

Would you like to take better care of your body but aren't sure what to do? Focusing on our souls doesn't mean we should neglect taking care of our bodies. But often we are so busy caring for others and keeping to our schedules that we think we can't...

It's only natural to bristle when you are mistreated. Perhaps you were passed over for a well-deserved job promotion, hurt by a family member, falsely accused, or experienced a severe disappointment. An array of emotions—anger, frustration,...

Where is your marriage? Newly married, in a rut, coming off a major transition, or coming out of a period of crisis or conflict? Regardless of your situation, it's never too early—or too late, for that matter—to build habits that will...

Often, in our busy world, our lives feel like one long to-do list. It's easy to get so busy that we don't even notice how exhausted and anxious we are. Do you find yourself saying yes to activities you don't have time for? Have you ever said, "If I...

Another conversation ends in frustration or even anger. You want to communicate well and to grow deeper in your relationships, but either you can't seem to find the words or always seem to come up with the wrong ones. How can you develop greater...

There are many voices weighing in on the question of whether you can change your sexual orientation. Yes, no, maybe so—it can be confusing and disorienting to sort through the mess. You want to follow God, but what does that mean when it comes to...

Caring for aging parents is complex and challenging even under the best of circumstances. How do we help them and remain sane when distance, dementia, depression, disaster, divorce, disintegrated relationships, deteriorating health, and discouragement...

Everyone has their own style of dealing with conflict. Some people try to win at all costs and will do or say anything to get their own way. Others hate conflict and will do or say anything to avoid or end it. Sadly, neither fighting nor avoidance leads...

What makes you angry? Sometimes it's small things: traffic jams, a waiter's mistake, or a friend's inattention. And sometimes it's big things: betrayal, injustice, meanness, violence, oppression, selfishness, and lying. How do you deal with your anger?...

You feel betrayed. Someone close to you has hurt you deeply. You want to move past the pain and your obsession with what happened, but how? The usual strategies—trying to get even, trying to forget—just aren't working for you. Perhaps it's...

Are your personal or relational problems overwhelming you, negatively impacting your daily life or relationships? While all of us face the common pressures of living in a broken world, sometimes those challenges become too much to handle alone, and they...

Is a life-threatening illness, a major life change, or just plain old age forcing you to face your own mortality? Probably, like most of us, you'd rather not think or talk about your own death. But ignoring your death won't stop it from...

You made a commitment to Jesus (or maybe you didn't), but now you are questioning everything. Is there a God? Are you really forgiven and accepted for Jesus's sake? It sounds too good to be true. And if the Bible really is true and Jesus really did rise...

Do you dread family get-togethers and try to avoid your extended family whenever you can? When you see your family, do you sometimes regret the way you talk and act? Why is it so hard to get along with the people we grew up with? Childhood hurts,...

Right now you are probably feeling guilty about one thing or another–what you said to your spouse last night, those unrelenting thoughts, something you did years ago and regret, actual lying and cheating, the places where you are struggling right...

Are you facing an unexpected financial crisis or anticipating the possibility of difficult times ahead? Financial problems happen for so many reasons, but right now the uncertainty of the future, coupled with unstable economic conditions, means that...

Disability has a way of trying even the best of marriages. The cumulative effects of daily routines that never vary, social isolation, financial pressures, unmet expectations, and a life that is vastly different from most couples can wear on the spirits...

Forgiving someone who has hurt you is one of the most difficult tasks anyone ever faces. In fact, it is so hard that most people avoid it at all costs. But when we don't forgive, we pay the price of bitterness that affects all of our relationships. Is...