How often have you seen a friend and been greeted with “How are you?” Almost always our automatic response is “Fine thank you” regardless of whether it’s true. We proclaim in church services that “God is good all the time . . . All the time God is good,” but there are often times when we feel that life is just unfair and ask God, “Why?” The uplifting songs and victorious testimonies of our church gatherings are frequently difficult to identify within the midst of the suffering and hardship of people’s daily lives, yet there is all too often no room for our “not-OK” experiences in our Christian communities. This is especially true for pastors and leaders who are required to always be strong and OK all the time. But the songs of lament in the Psalms paint a very different picture of understanding life and how human beings express themselves to God. Dr Rico Villanueva uses these Scriptures to teach us that in the presence of God, there is room to be “not-OK” and that our negative experiences don’t have to be ignored. This book challenges us to confront our struggles and questions instead of denying them. Most importantly, the author invites us to bring all of ourselves into the presence of God and the community of faith. For it is through our experiences and sharing them with God and his church that we grow in intimacy with God and our relationships with one another.

Challenging conventional wisdom on grief, a pioneering therapist offers a new resource for those experiencing loss When a painful loss or life-shattering event upends your world, here is the first thing to know: there is nothing wrong with grief. “Grief is simply love in its most wild and painful form,” says Megan Devine. “It is a natural and sane response to loss.” So, why does our culture treat grief like a disease to be cured as quickly as possible? In It’s OK That You’re Not OK, Megan Devine offers a profound new approach to both the experience of grief and the way we try to help others who have endured tragedy. Having experienced grief from both sides—as both a therapist and as a woman who witnessed the accidental drowning of her beloved partner—Megan writes with deep insight about the unspoken truths of loss, love, and healing. She debunks the culturally prescribed goal of returning to a normal, “happy” life, replacing it with a far healthier middle path, one that invites us to build a life alongside grief rather than seeking to overcome it. In this compelling and heartful book, you’ll learn: • Why well-meaning advice, therapy, and spiritual wisdom so often end up making it harder for people in grief • How challenging the myths of grief—doing away with stages, timetables, and unrealistic ideals about how grief should unfold—allows us to accept grief as a mystery to be honored instead of a problem to solve • Practical guidance for managing stress, improving sleep, and decreasing anxiety without trying to “fix” your pain • How to help the people you love—with essays to teach us the best skills, checklists, and suggestions for supporting and comforting others through the grieving process Many people who have suffered a loss feel judged, dismissed, and misunderstood by a culture that wants to “solve” grief. Megan writes, “Grief no more needs a solution than love needs a solution.” Through stories, research, life tips, and creative and mindfulness-based practices, she offers a unique guide through an experience we all must face—in our personal lives, in the lives of those we love, and in the wider world. It’s OK That You’re Not OK is a book for grieving people, those who love them, and all those seeking to love themselves—and each other—better.

We've all experienced that moment where we wish we could start all over again. Failed marriages, lost friends, addictions, lost jobs. This is not the life we imagined. Yesterday can sometimes leave us stuck, sad, shamed, scared, and searching. Sheila Walsh encourages readers to face the pain head on and then start again, from right where they are. She shares that when she discovered "I'm not good enough and I'm good with that," everything started to change. In It's Okay Not to Be Okay, Walsh helps women overcome the same old rut of struggles and pain by changing the way they think about God, themselves, and their everyday lives. She shares practical, doable, daily strategies that will help women move forward one step at a time knowing God will never let them down.

'This is the freshest, most honest collection of writings about mental health that I've read...searing wit, blinding passion, bleeding emotion and a fantastic, heroic, glorious refusal to lie down and take it' - Stephen Fry 'Reading this book made me feel more normal about the things I feel sometimes...It's a great book; however you're feeling, it'll help' - Ed Sheeran 'This is the book I needed when I was little. May this be a leap forward in the much needed conversation around mental health' - Jameela Jamil Everyone has a mental health. So we asked: What does yours mean to you? THE RESULT IS EXTRAORDINARY. Over 60 people have shared their stories. Powerful, funny, moving, this book is here to tell you: It's OK. With writing from: Adam Kay - Alastair Campbell - Alexis Caught - Ben Platt - Bryony Gordon - Candice Carty-Williams - Charlie Mackesy - Charly Cox - Chidera Eggerue - Claire Stancliffe - Davina McCall - Dawn O'Porter - Elizabeth Day - Elizabeth Uviebinené - Ella Purnell - Emilia Clarke - Emma Thompson - Eve Delaney - Fearne Cotton - Gabby Edlin - Gemma Styles - GIRLI (Milly Toomey) - Grace Beverley - Hannah Witton - Honey Ross - Hussain Manawer - Jack Rooke - James Blake - Jamie Flook - Jamie Windust - Jessie Cave - Jo Irwin - Jonah Freud - Jonny Benjamin - Jordan Stephens - Kai-Isaiah Jamal - Kate Weinberg - Kelechi Okafor - Khalil Aldabbas - KUCHENGA - Lauren Mahon - Lena Dunham - Maggie Matic - Martha Lane Fox - Mathew Kollamkulam - Matt Haig - Megan Crabbe - Michael Kitching - Michelle Elman - Miranda Hart - Mitch Price - Mona Chalabi - Montana Brown - Nadia Craddock - Naomi Campbell - Poorna Bell - Poppy Jamie - Reggie Yates - Ripley Parker - Robert Kazandjian - Rosa Mercuriadis - Saba Asif - Sam Smith - Scarlett Curtis - Scarlett Moffatt - Scottee - Sharon Chalkin Feldstein - Shonagh Marie - Simon Amstell - Steve Ali - Tanya Byron - Travon Free - Yomi Adegoke - Yusuf Al Majarhi

Jade Evans is a world-famous singer and actress, and the world may seem to be her oyster. But, the public knows nothing about her childhood abuse and her low self-esteem or how hard life is for her at this point. Her work life is on an upward swing, though. She collaborates on some songs with a very popular boy band and even acts in a few movies. All her fans love anything she does. But, because of the abuse she suffered as a child, she completely does not trust any man. But, ever since she met the boy band, the company people associated with them and their friends and families, they transform her outlook on life and love and also totally change the direction of her life — in a good way.

Andi Dorfman tells the unvarnished truth about why looking for love on television is no paradise. -- cover.

It's OK not to be OK acknowledges and explores common mental health disorders such as depression, eating disorders, and anxiety. Get the low down on these issues, why they happen, and discover ways of looking after mental health in our fast-moving world. This book will help children and young people develop the resilience to cope with whatever life throws at them and grow into well-rounded, healthy adults.

Life is not always as we imagined it would be. Sheila Walsh wants you to face the pain of yesterday head-on and then start again, from right where you are. In this companion study guide to It's Okay Not to Be Okay, she helps you overcome the same old rut of struggles and pain by changing the way you think about God, yourself, and your everyday life. Her practical, doable, daily strategies will help you move forward one step at a time, knowing God will never let you down.

We tend to applaud those who think for themselves: the ever-curious student, for example, or the grownup who does their own research. Even as we’re applauding, however, we ourselves often don’t think for ourselves. This book argues that’s completely OK. In fact, it’s often best just to take other folks’ word for it, allowing them to do the hard work of gathering and evaluating the relevant evidence. In making this argument, philosopher Jonathan Matheson shows how 'expert testimony' and 'the wisdom of crowds' are tested and provides convincing ideas that make it rational to believe something simply because other people believe it. Matheson then takes on philosophy’s best arguments against his thesis, including the idea that non-self-thinkers are free-riding on the work of others, Socrates’ claim that 'the unexamined life isn’t worth living,' and that outsourcing your intellectual labor makes you vulnerable to errors and manipulation. Matheson shows how these claims and others ultimately fail -- and that when it comes to thinking, we often need not be sheepish about being sheep. Key Features Discusses the idea of not thinking for yourself in the context of contemporary issues like climate change and vaccinations Engages in numerous contemporary debates in social epistemology Examines what can be valuable about thinking for yourself and argues that these are insufficient to require you to do so Outlines the key, practical takeaways from the argument in an epilogue