A message from Doll
For those of us in the UK, July comes with a promise of sun and much-needed vitamin D.
School’s break up, festivals all over the country are in full swing (turn back to our May edition to see the full list of Christian festivals taking place this summer!) and we can shrug off the heavy layers worn for so much of the year.
It is a well-documented fact that the sun – and the light it emits – plays a significant part in our mood and I’m generally in quite a good one this time of year.
However, as I edited our cover story this issue, I recalled some particularly down times where I felt anything but. Award-winning singer, Mandisa Lynn Hundley is very open about her own struggles with depression and the seeming oxymoron of being a Christian at the same time.
As a church, we can be quite dismissive about mental health issues, but when we read the Psalms, we can see that even the mighty King David may have suffered as he cried out to God. In Psalm 38:8 he cries: “I am feeble and utterly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart.”
The number of people reporting mental health issues has shot up since COVID-19. Not surprising when you consider the loneliness and fear many experienced during the lockdowns.
And, of course, Christians are not exempt from these troubles. However, whether you are feeling sunny or down today, I hope you will be encouraged by Jesus’ words in John 16:33: “I have told you these things so that in me, you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Tola-Doll Fisher
Editor + Creative Director
