Treasure is not something
I expected to find
in the darkness.
All I wanted was to find a way out!
JAN DRAVECKY

When Dave and I first began to experience the injuries and illness that eventually led to the amputation of his left arm, I thought God would miraculously deliver us. I expected us to emerge in a few months as victorious examples of what God could do for those who followed Him. I never imagined our journey through that dark valley of suffering would last for years.

As the weeks stretched into months and then year, I became consumed by our suffering. I tried harder and harder to get back to our “normal” life but I was powerless to change our situation or to understand what God was doing. As I became weaker and more exhausted from trying to fix everything by my own efforts I became increasingly desperate for relief.

I certainly wasn’t looking for any treasures from God. Deep inside I was fighting God and felt completely shut off from Him. When people suggested that God might be doing something wonderful in our lives I got angry. I knew only that I was drowning and I wanted out!

But in spite of my bad attitude – in spite of me doing things my way – in spite of my overwhelming depression – God was still at work within me. There were indeed treasures in the darkness and He would be faithful to give them to me.

About one year after Dave’s comeback I was in the deepest throes of my depression from my perspective everything was very, very black. I couldn’t make myself do anything, go anywhere or see anyone. The three people I had depended upon most for support were Dave and my parents but Dave was undergoing radiation treatments and nothing left to give and both of my parents had died. Dave’s parents were doing all they could to help us but inside I was losing the battle. I felt totally helpless, hopeless and alone.

That is when I discovered the first unexpected treasure God had for me. And I wasn’t even looking for it! In fact, I was ready to give up everything walk away from God. But when I tried to walk away, I couldn’t. Almost to my surprise I realized there was nowhere else I wanted to go. I was just like Peter who when Jesus asked His twelve disciples if they would desert Him and …

Peter replied, “Master, to whom would we go?
You have the words of real life, eternal life.
We’ve already committed ourselves,
Confident that you are the Holy One of God.”
JOHN 6:68-69 (THE MESSAGE)

When I realized that I truly believed those words I was thrilled! My faith was real! What a treasure!. Even when I was at the end of my rope and ready to run away I couldn’t do it Because I truly believe that God is the Only Way to eternal life and there is no hope apart from Him. Learning that my faith was real brought me great joy and gave me hope when nothing else could. That treasure was the turning point in my experience of suffering.

Although I had not realized it suffering had tested, refined and strengthened my faith. I discovered as 1 Peter 1:3-7 says that faith is far more valuable gold. That discovery renewed my hope and inspired me to search the Scriptures to learn His promises. The hope those Truths of Scripture brought to me became my greatest treasure in the darkness – my lifeline – in the midst of pain. I was still in the valley of suffering but I had learned there were rich treasures there also.

What a God we have!
And how fortunate we are to have him,
This Father of our Master Jesus!
Because Jesus was raised from the dead,
We’ve been given a brand-new life
and have everything to live for,
including a future in heaven –
and the future starts now!
God is keeping careful watch over us and the future.
The Day is coming when you’ll have it all –
life healed and whole.
I know how great this makes you feel,
even though you have to put up with
every kind of aggravation in the meantime.
Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure;
genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine.
When Jesus wraps this all up,
it’s your faith, not your gold,
that God will have on display as evidence of his victory.
1 PETER 1:3-7 (THE MESSAGE)

ON THE JOURNEY WITH YOU,
JAN DRAVECKY

Pain, Peace, Prayer, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

Cry Out To God

By connie on

May 12, 2014

- Pain, Peace, Prayer, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?
How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul,
with sorrow in my heart every day?
How long will my enemy have the upper hand?
Turn and answer me, O Lord my God!
Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.
PSALM 13:1-3 (NLT)

Sound familiar? King David’s desperate cry to God is echoed by many of us who find it difficult to see clearly in the midst of our suffering. God may seem far away – we may feel forgotten by Him – and we may feel as if we will die from the overwhelming grief in our hearts.

Where do we turn for help when we are feeling any of the above? King David’s relationship with God was such that when he could not see clearly and found himself confused, lonely and hurt – he cried out and questioned God …

Lord, why are you standing aloof and far away?
Why do you hide when I need you the most?
PSALM 10:1 (LB)

The prophet Elijah once found himself in such a bad place (1 Kings 19:1-18) that he cried out to God …

“I’ve had enough, … take away my life.
I’ve got to die sometime, and it might as well be now.”
1 KINGS 19:4 (LB)

And wretched, impoverished, grieving Job said that if he could talk to God …

I would tell him all
about my side of this argument,
and listen to his reply,
and understand what he wants.
JOB 23:4-5 (LB)

When we are overwhelmed by pain – when our circumstances scream, “This makes no sense!” many of us want the same thing – an audience with God –a one-on-one Q & A with God. We want relief. If we can’t escape the pain we at least want some kind of an explanation. When we have to endure what seems unendurable we want the comfort of knowing that God sees clearly and still holds our future in His able hands.

God responded to David, Elijah and Job – not necessarily in the way they expected or what they would have liked to hear – but His response enabled them to see and understand their circumstances more clearly.

So what about us: What if we could have a one-on-one conversation with God? What if we could ask our Creator some of our troublesome questions? How might He respond?

Over the next several weeks we will ask some of the questions we frequently ask of God when we are suffering and we can’t see or understand our circumstances clearly. For God’s response we went to the Bible – the Word of God – to see if He had already addressed those questions for us. We think what we found will amaze you and will open your eyes to help you see more clearly which will help you endure and find peace in whatever circumstances you face.

Lord, you know the hopes of humble people.
Surely you will hear their cries
and comfort their hearts
by helping them.
PSALM 10:17 (LB)

On the journey with you,
Jan & Dave Dravecky

Hope, Pain, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

Listening for Fresh Insights

By connie on

April 30, 2014

- Hope, Pain, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

Wise men and women are always learning,
always listening for fresh insights.
PROVERBS 18:15 (THE MESSAGE)

Fresh insight – that is what is needed when we have a perspective meltdown due to the difficult times we all face. As I have gone through my perspective meltdowns and have watched others endure through it I have come to realize how shortsighted our human perspective is. We can’t see the whole picture but we live as if the little piece we do see is all there is!

In contrast, God sees the whole picture from beginning through eternity. He is the Alpha and the Omega. In our trials as we turn to Him and listen for fresh insights we can find hope and strength to endure by learning to view our life from God’s perspective – an Eternal Perspective.

I know it is not easy to always see your life from an Eternal Perspective especially when you are dealing with the painful here and now. But I am so grateful that God didn’t give up on me as I struggled to learn to see my suffering in light of eternity rather than what I could visually see and discern. I learned from His Word that …

There’s far more here than meets the eye.
The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow.
But the things we can’t see now will last forever.
2 CORINTHIANS 4:18 (THE MESSAGE)

But while I would waver between the here and now and what will last forever – God never gave up on me. One of the really cool things I have learned about Him is that even when I lose sight of His Eternal Perspective – He still loves me! When I take my eyes off Him and become fixated on this journey because it is really hard and I am hurting – he doesn’t wag his finger at me! And when I get stuck and can’t see beyond my immediate circumstances He keeps encouraging me to look to Him because He wants me to see clearly what He can see.

And the Good News is that as I look to Him I am drawn closer to His heart where I find comfort, understanding, and clarity as I endure the journey. My eyes are opened to clearly see and embrace the bigger perspective that is all about trusting Him to lead me to eternity with Him.

We don’t yet see things clearly.
We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist.
But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright!
We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!
1 CORINTHIANS 13:12 (THE MESSAGE)

On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky

Hope, Pain, Words of Endurance

Hope for a Shattered Perspective

By Nathan Solla on

March 6, 2014

- Hope, Pain, Words of Endurance

So we’re not giving up.
How could we!
Even though on the outside
it often looks like things are falling apart on us,
on the inside, where God is making new life,
not a day goes by without his unfolding grace.
These hard times are small potatoes
compared to the coming good times,
the lavish celebration prepared for us.
There’s far more here than meets the eye.
The things we see now are
here today, gone tomorrow.
But the things we can’t see now
will last forever.
2 CORINTHIANS 4:16-18 (THE MESSAGE)

I know firsthand how hard it is to find solid ground when pain and suffering blast into your world and turns it upside down. How overwhelming it feels when adversity shatters your view on life. How frustrating it is to lose perspective just when you need clear vision and insight the most.

To me, the journey through pain and suffering feels a bit like waking up in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language. All of a sudden you are in a world you don’t understand. You don’t understand what people are saying to you and you don’t know how to communicate back to them. Sometimes you don’t even understand what your own brain is thinking! You have no clue about what is happening around you but there is no doubt you are right in the middle of it.

That is the way it is in the world of pain and suffering. Suddenly everything you thought you knew about life – how it worked – how it was supposed to be – what is important – is up for grabs. At that moment the questions flood over you: “How do I survive this?” “How do I make life work again?” “Is it always going to be this hard?” “What do I need to do to just to get through the day?” “Will my life ever be normal again?”

As difficult as this journey is I promise you that in the midst of your pain there are some wonderful things that you can begin to experience that will help you endure and bring you to a new normal. Over the next several weeks we will be sharing others’ perspective-building experiences with you. We know these true-life stories will bring you a new perspective resulting in hope.

So if you feel lost in the darkness of a strange and unknown place – be assured that you will survive the journey when you begin to rebuild your shattered perspective. Be assured there is a hope that will not lead you to disappointment!

We can rejoice, too,
when we run into problems and trials,
for we know that they help us develop endurance.
And endurance develops strength of character,
and character strengthens
our confident hope of salvation.
And this hope will not lead to disappointment.
ROMANS 5:3-5 (NLT)

On the Journey with You,
Dave Dravecky

Hope, Pain, Perspectives, Words of Endurance

Training for an Attitude Change

By connie on

December 12, 2013

- Hope, Pain, Perspectives, Words of Endurance

Train yourself in godliness,
for, while physical training is of some value,
godliness is valuable in every way,
holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
1 TIMOTHY 4:7-8 (NRSV)

Changing our attitudes requires us to change the way we think and that is a process that doesn’t happen overnight – it takes training! It may take weeks, months or even longer to “retrain” our attitudes in godliness but like an athlete in training, those of us in “attitude training” need to focus on the specific exercises that will enable us to reach our goal.

Below is an ATTITUDE acrostic. Perhaps you can use the reminders on the ATTITUDE acrostic as “training stations” to help keep you on track while you train for a godly attitude. I know it sure has helped us on our journey to mature our attitudes!

Ask God to help you have a right attitude. Ask Him often for …

Teachability, for a heart that is willing to embrace change.

Truth, so you know what and how to mature.

Insight into the obstacles that keep you from maturing.

Tenacity, so you don’t give up when you experience setbacks.

Understanding of the Scriptures, the source for right thoughts and attitudes.

Desire to have a godly attitude – the same attitude as Jesus.

Endurance to continue to mature your attitude.

Your attitude should be
the kind that was shown us by Jesus Christ,
who, though he was God,
did not demand and cling to his rights as God,
but laid aside his mighty power and glory,
taking the disguise of a slave and becoming like men.
And he humbled himself even further,
going so far as actually to die a criminal’s death on a cross.
PHILIPPIANS 2:5-8 (TLB)

On the Journey with You,
Dave & Jan Dravecky

Depression, Discovering Who I Am, Doubt, Guilt, Healing, Hope, Loss, Pain, Words of Endurance

Me? Depressed?

By connie on

October 7, 2012

- Depression, Discovering Who I Am, Doubt, Guilt, Healing, Hope, Loss, Pain, Words of Endurance

Lord, have mercy, because I am in misery.
My eyes are weak from so much crying,
and my whole being is tired from grief.
PSALM 31:9 (NCV) WORDS OF KING DAVID

It took an act of God to convince me that I was depressed. Me? Dave Dravecky depressed? You have got to be kidding me! I was always taught that it was impossible for a Christian to be depressed if he or she were walking with the Lord. I bought into that teaching and denied all my symptoms (as well as Jan’s) of depression. At that time, admitting that I was depressed and seeking professional help would have been like confessing sin.

I really believed that if I kept a positive attitude and kept trying to help others I could and should get around my own emotional pain without going through it. As an athlete, I had learned how to push past the pain. If I stopped pushing myself whenever I felt physical pain I never would have made it to the big leagues. So naturally I applied the same jock mentality to emotional pain but it didn’t work.

It didn’t work because I was going the wrong way and it nearly killed me. It was true …

There is a way that appears to be right,
but in the end it leads to death.
PROVERBS 14:12 (NIV)

My way of dealing with my pain pushed me into unhealthy habits that inevitably lead to depression. And what finally triggered the depression? I can tell you in one word: exhaustion – I was physically and emotionally exhausted.

Immediately after my amputation I pushed myself into a busy speaking schedule – I said yes to almost every request made of me. I had been given a message from God for people who were suffering and I was determined to deliver it. As a result, I ended up exhausted.

And to make matters worse I kept busy to avoid dealing with my emotional pain and loss. My pain was still within me – waiting to be addressed – draining me just as much as my hectic schedule. To this day I can’t clearly remember those months – it’s a blur – as though I were living in a fog. I was living in the fog of depression.

The hectic schedule wasn’t the only thing that exhausted me, however. Trying to do things with my remaining hand – the nondominant one at that – made me mentally tired. I had always worked well with my hands and now I was fumbling all over the place – that exhausted me.

And pain itself is exhausting. Having to mentally deal with pain – day in and day out – sapped my energy. I experienced phantom pain daily and the pain could be unbelievable. My left hand would cramp up. Just to release the cramp I would mentally have to pry loose my missing fingers. Sometimes the ends of my finger felt like they were on fire.

And then there was the contribution of my fears, doubts, worry and then guilt. When these emotions engulfed me it was like a tidal wave had hit me and that wave did me in. No wonder I was experiencing depression!

But then I finally listened to the Godly, Biblical counsel of others.

Fools think their own way is right,
but the wise listen to others.
PROVERBS 12:15 (NLT)

After about three weeks of counseling I realized that I was just as depressed as Jan was. But what a wonderful place to make such discovery – under the care and guidance of a Godly counselor – an act of God! Bit by bit I began to understand how my way of dealing with my pain was not God’s way. I learned God’s Way – God’s Truth. I needed to open my heart and address and confess my pain. What came out was, “I’m scared. I’m afraid. I don’t want to die. Where is my faith that I have so strongly professed? I am so weak and tired.”

You know there was great freedom in admitting that truth. The truth of God’s Word set me free but so did the truth about myself that only the Holy Spirit could expose. There was wonderful freedom for me in knowing I don’t have to be anything but who I truly am – the good, the bad and the ugly – even me depressed!

If you find yourself in the same place I was – exhausted and depressed – please do not hesitate to seek help from our Heavenly Father, the Holy Spirit and the help from Godly others.

“And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate,
who will never leave you.
He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth.”
JOHN 14:15-17 (NLT)

On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky

Counsel, Depression, Discovering Who I Am, Grief, Healing, Pain, Words of Endurance

Accepting Wise Counsel

By Nathan Solla on

September 25, 2012

- Counsel, Depression, Discovering Who I Am, Grief, Healing, Pain, Words of Endurance

The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters,
but one who has insight draws them out.
PROVERBS 20:5 (NIV)

I admit it – I did not want to go to counseling – I did not want to share my feelings or my weaknesses with anyone. To me that appeared to be an even greater weakness – needing someone else to fix me. I was convinced that God and I together could fix myself.

After much begging I reluctantly agreed to go to counseling – not because I needed it but because Jan was depressed and SHE needed the counsel. I agreed to go to be her support.

I went in with a lot of apprehension. When we got in there, at first all I did was listen. Jan was hurting so much that she ended up dominating most of the sessions. I told myself I was there for my wife. But as I saw it work for her I became more open to the positive effect counseling could have on me. Before I knew it – within three weeks – I was the one on the couch!

Up to that point in life I had been unable to identify or articulate what I was feeling – I was totally out of touch with my feelings. A lot of it had to do with my fear – as a male – as a jock – of showing weakness. But through the insight of our Christian counselor – he helped me unravel the things that were holding me back from being vulnerable and transparent. He helped me peel back the layers and begin exposing what was going on in the deep waters of my heart. He gave me permission to grieve my losses. I was shocked – bringing my pain and weaknesses into the light actually brought healing.

Counseling also taught me to be a better communicator. By learning how to listen and communicate I was then able to identify and verbalize how I was feeling deep down inside. I learned to process with my wife what was going on inside – my feelings and my thoughts. That enabled us to become more supportive of each other. Not only was learning to communicate my feelings a huge blessing and further step to my maturity individually but the double blessing was that our marriage and love for one another grew stronger.

While it was very hard at first to admit that I needed the help I am now so thankful for the guidance I received from our counselor who was guided himself by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. The whole inner process took months but was so worth it because I could have never done it on my own.

It is difficult – if not impossible –
to turn on the light of objectivity by ourselves.
We need guidance from the Holy Spirit
and usually the honesty, love and encouragement
of one other person who is willing to help us.
ROBERT MCGEE THE SEARCH FOR SIGNIFICANCE

Thank God that the process while difficult is not one we face alone. We are God’s children so be assured that He will gently and lovingly guide us each step of the way.

You guide me with your counsel,
leading me to a glorious destiny.
PSALM 73:24 (NLT)

On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky

Discovering Who I Am, Loss, Pain, Trust, Words of Endurance

Step Two-Move Onward

By Nathan Solla on

August 28, 2012

- Discovering Who I Am, Loss, Pain, Trust, Words of Endurance

I’m not saying that I have this all together,
that I have it made.
But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ,
who has so wondrously reached out for me.
Friends, don’t get me wrong:
By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this,
but I’ve got my eye on the goal,
where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus.
I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back.
PHILIPPIANS 3:12-14

After I faced the pain of losing my arm and my identity I knew it was time to press on – time to move onward – time to trust God to build a new identity. There was no turning back.

Prior to my retirement from professional baseball in November of 1989 I had realized that God was doing something in my life that was bigger than baseball. I knew before the cancer in my arm had returned – before my arm had to be amputated – that a major change was coming. I didn’t know what God had in store on the journey but I knew something different lay ahead.

That heartfelt assurance was a strong motivation to move onward through the difficult journey I was on. And I knew the Lord had said and promised …

“Forget about what’s happened;
don’t keep going over old history.
Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new.
It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?
There it is! I’m making a road through the desert,
rivers in the badlands.”
ISAIAH 43:18-19 (THE MESSAGE)

Alan Redpath has observed that “When God wants to do an impossible thing, He takes an impossible man and crushes him.” As I endured the crushing of this impossible man – me – I had the hope and the promise that I could move onward and that God would rebuild what He had crushed because I believed the words of the Apostle Paul …

There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind
that the God who started this great work in you
would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish
on the very day Christ Jesus appears.
PHILIPPIANS 1:6 (THE MESSAGE)

Be encouraged and know that as we bring our brokenness before God that we can trust that God will rebuild us – put us back together. As He did for me – as He did for King David – I close with King David’s words …

God made my life complete
when I placed all the pieces before him.
When I got my act together,
he gave me a fresh start.
Now I’m alert to God’s ways;
I don’t take God for granted.
Every day I review the ways he works;
I try not to miss a trick.
I feel put back together,
and I’m watching my step.
God rewrote the text of my life
when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.
PSALM 18:20-24 (THE MESSAGE)

On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky

Discovering Who I Am, Healing, Loss, Pain, Trust, Words of Endurance

Step One-Facing Past Pain & Loss

By Nathan Solla on

August 21, 2012

- Discovering Who I Am, Healing, Loss, Pain, Trust, Words of Endurance

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
… a time to mourn …
ECCLESIASTES 3:1,4

When I look back on my life – discovering who I am has been an ever-evolving journey for me. I believe that I am not alone – in fact, I know that while we may be on different paths and experience different life changing events – many of us find ourselves on the same quest.

It is my desire over the next several weeks for me to share this journey of mine. I have evolved from a son and a brother to a husband and father. And I have been a student and an athlete – first an amateur and then a professional. I have loved, accepted and transitioned with every new identity. (Well maybe not the student identity so much!) But my first major identity crisis – asking God who am I now – came when I lost my arm to cancer.

Battling cancer is hard enough but for many survivors – and I am one – cancer leaves us with an even tougher battle to fight. That battle has to do with our identity. When the storm of cancer sweeps into our lives the landscape can change dramatically. Everything familiar may be wiped away or changed beyond recognition. We may have lost the relationships, skills, and resources that have been an essential part of who we are and have given us a sense of joy and purpose in living. So some of us journey out of cancer as very different people.

When I lost my arm – I lost my career, my position and my sense of identity. All I had ever done career wise was play baseball. Who was I if I was not a pro baseball player? It was a long, painful and difficult journey to identify the real Dave Dravecky.

But for me the journey did not begin right away. Part of the reason was because I did not take the time to mourn the loss of my arm – that would have been the emotionally healthy step to take. But oh no – not me! Instead, I had a cavalier attitude about it. Before the amputation, I jokingly waved my left arm in the air – pretending that it was saying goodbye. After the amputation, I thrust myself into travel and speaking to prove that I could overcome this loss.

The truth was I did not want to face the pain and the reality of the loss and the fact that I was a changed person. The questions of who I was and where do I go from here – could not be held at bay any longer. Jan continued to say to me …

The only way to heal from the pain of losses suffered
is to go through the pain.
There is no way around it.
You can stuff it – you can dodge it.
But eventually, you will have to face it.

When I started to take the first step by asking those questions instead of ignoring them, I was surprised to discover that so much of my identity was wrapped up in that arm and what it was capable of doing. My arm had brought me joy, worth, status and had provided a wonderful lifestyle. I had lost all of these when I lost my arm. Until I came face to face with the personal losses that came with the physical loss of my arm – I was awash in a storm of denial and depression.

If I have learned anything through the loss of my arm it is that ignoring the loss and not taking the time to mourn that loss was a huge boulder on my path to discovering who I truly was. So step one for me was to remove that boulder by honestly facing my pain and loss and then moving on with God.

Oswald Chambers wrote in My Utmost for His Highest …

“Beware of harking back to what you once were when God wants you to be something you’ve never been.”

If we allow God to work through our losses He will always teach us something that will bring us closer to Him and make us more like Him. And that is anything but loss. It is incredible how much we gain through our losses.

On the journey with you,
Dave Dravecky

Counsel, Depression, Grief, Pain, Words of Endurance

When Wounds & Weakness Overwhelm Us

By connie on

July 24, 2012

- Counsel, Depression, Grief, Pain, Words of Endurance

Save me, O God,
for the floodwaters are up to my neck.
Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire;
I can’t find a foothold.
I am in deep water,
and the floods overwhelm me.
PSALM 69:1-2 PSALM OF DAVID (NLT)

Often times when we are experiencing painful affliction it can seem as though we are sinking deeper and deeper into the muck and mire. We can be so overwhelmed that we feel as though we are going to drown in the rising floodwaters of pain – physically, emotionally and Spiritually.

You have heard me say before that we are physical, emotional and spiritual beings. It is impossible for one part of our being to be in pain without impacting the other two. This is especially true when we experience a physical affliction. It is expected and normal for us to feel the pain physically that comes with the affliction but it is also normal and we should also expect to feel that pain emotionally and spiritually. When we begin to experience the unexpected emotional and spiritual pain – we are blindsided and that can be more than overwhelming.

If you are experiencing the following symptoms on a consistent basis – your emotional and spiritual health may be at risk.

You feel out of touch with your emotions – the feelings of your heart – you feel numb.

You feel out of touch with God – you can no longer sense His presence.

You have feelings of hopelessness and despair.

You have difficulty concentrating or finishing tasks.

You experience inappropriate outbursts of irritability, anger and rage.

You find yourself crying on a daily basis.

You have withdrawn from activities that used to bring you pleasure. You no longer experience joy.

Your sleeping and eating patterns are disrupted and/or changed.

You entertain self-destructive thoughts or think about hurting others.

Just as there are professionals who deal with physical health, there are professionals who specialize in emotional and spiritual health. If items on the list above describe you – you may benefit by consulting such a professional. Dave and I both are so grateful for the Christian psychologists and pastors who helped and guided both us out of the muck and mire of our depressions that were a result of Dave’s battle with cancer.

There is no shame in seeking the counsel of Christian psychologists, counselors, therapists and your pastor because they are able to see and help us in ways that we cannot see or help ourselves.

The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters,
but a man of understanding draws them out.
PROVERBS 20:5

And it is biblical and wise to seek the counsel of others.

Wise men and women listen to each other’s counsel.
PROVERBS 13:10 (THE MESSAGE)

And don’t forget that as children of God we not only have the wise Spirit-led counsel of others but we also have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that will guide us to all Truth.

And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever
— the Spirit of truth.
The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.
But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.
JOHN 14:16-17

And He promises …

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you and watch over you.
PSALM 32:8

On the journey with you,
Jan Dravecky

Anger, Depression, Hope, Pain, Treasures in the Darkness, Words of Endurance

There is Treasure in the Darkness!

Pain, Peace, Prayer, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

Cry Out To God

Hope, Pain, Seeing Clearly, Words of Endurance

Listening for Fresh Insights

Hope, Pain, Words of Endurance

Hope for a Shattered Perspective

Hope, Pain, Perspectives, Words of Endurance

Training for an Attitude Change

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Discovering Who I Am, Healing, Loss, Pain, Trust, Words of Endurance

Step One-Facing Past Pain & Loss

Counsel, Depression, Grief, Pain, Words of Endurance

When Wounds & Weakness Overwhelm Us

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