GOD IS BIG ENOUGH TO COVER YOUR MISTAKES, JUST AS HE DID FOR RAHAB THE HARLOT.

One of the most difficult things for people to do is overcome the past. Mental health providers, social service persons, psychiatric practitioners and even the religious community will all attest to the fact that "issues" from the past continue to reverberate and ricochet into the present of most people's lives, causing a whole range of consequences from toxic relationships to emotional handicaps to even physical illnesses.

The concept isn't new. We have long recognized that "the child is father of the man" and "what is past is prologue" in our lives. Helping people find a way to cast off the baggage of the past is one of the most difficult tasks in ministry. read more

8:00PM EDT 5/31/2005

The time you spend in interaction with others can dramatically affect your physical health.

One evening I was called to an old, ramshackle home out in the country to examine a home death. When I arrived at the house, a deputy met me at the door. "Doc, sure looks natural. The old lady's been up here, all alone, for years. Never left the house. Never had any visitors. Never went to the doctor—not that I can blame her."

He looked rather suspiciously toward me as I ducked to enter the undersized door, ignoring his slight to the medical profession. He continued his soliloquy: "She had a friend who brought her food and supplies. Her friend found her here this evening and called us." read more

Pets of every kind warm our hearts, not just puppies. Now studies show that they can make us healthier.

For many years I cared for patients at nursing homes. I loved the afternoons I would spend with them. I made sure to touch them and to give them a hug.

More often than not, when I made rounds at the nursing home, I'd bring one of my children with me. The patients loved seeing the kids and talking to them. read more

8:00PM EDT 3/31/2007

Although we have known for some time that the underlying issue for eating disorders is a need for control, research now links this need for control to unresolved pain from significantly hurtful experiences in a person's life. According to Dr. Gregory Jantz in his book Hope, Help and Healing for Eating Disorders (Shaw Books, 2002), "Studies have indicated that 80 percent or more of people with eating disorders have been victims of some sort of abuse--whether verbal, emotional, physical or sexual. By controlling what you eat, you are really trying to control that terrible pain." read more

Janet Maccaro, Ph.D., CNC, recommends the following steps for coping with symptoms of peri-menopause or menopause:

1. Manage your stress. Forgive past hurts and apologize to those you may have wronged in the past. Make sure to get enough sleep. Exercise daily. Eliminate sugar as much as possible. Fellowship daily. read more

If falling asleep is a nightmare for you, here are some tips to make the thought of going to bed less frightening.

Almighty God, who created the universe with unparalleled wisdom, also created your body to need rest. In His wisdom God made rest a foundational principle for life on Earth.

The Bible says, "On the seventh day, having finished His task, God rested from all His work. And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when He rested from His work of creation" (Gen. 2:2-3, NLT). read more

7:00PM EST 11/30/2002