Depression or dealing with symptoms of depression in some form has been my near constant companion for the past twenty years.

I type that and think, wow, can that be right?

I have had seasons where I have not taken medication and been fine, times when I thought I was completely cured. But even when I look back on those times I wonder, was I really coping as well as I thought I was?

And I think of all of the people I hid it from, because I was tired of them saying I should trust God and pray more. I was tired of being judged. So so tired of the stigma. So I kept it to myself.

I didn’t know if other Christians felt the way I did, though statistically I knew it was true. One in four adults has dealt with depression at some point in their life. And today I read the 39% of mothers face it before their first child is twelve. So, yeah, we get depressed.

But before reading statistics, I met Alia Joy who generously has written about and shared her struggle with depression and bi-polar disorder. She introduces herself as a writer who writes about her feelings online. A couple of weeks ago I shared a quote of hers on Instagram.

Alia Joy’s book, Glorious Weakness: Discovering God in all we Lack*, was released today and I am so excited. I am excited for her, of course, but I am actually more excited for you. Because now YOU get to read some more of her words. Here is what I have to say about it:

This is the book I didn’t know I was waiting for. And if you feel like life isn’t what you hoped or expected, if you feel like you are lacking before God and others, I think it will be that book for you, too.

With tender vulnerability and words that turn sentences into songs, Alia Joy openly shares her life with us in Glorious Weakness. From the opening chapters where she teaches on the beauty Jesus sees in our poverty and weakness to the end when she opens her life up for us to see her life with mental illness, Alia Joy provides a clear picture of what it is to be loved by God despite what we think we need to be accepted by him. Beloved is how Alia Joy trusts God to define her and I come away from this book believing that I, despite my weaknesses, failures, and my own mental illness, I am beloved, too.

I didn’t know I needed to hear another woman talk about her mental illness until I started reading Alia Joy’s words. I didn’t know how desperately I needed someone else to speak of her experience, to understand what it feels like to be unable to change her feelings. More than that, Alia Joy speaks truth in the face of the lies the people of the church speak about God’s love for us. That we are blessed because we are poor in spirit, not in spite of it. For that alone, I am so grateful.

Perhaps you need some encouragement. Maybe you feel weak and that you are lacking. Let Alia Joy teach you that what you thought was your greatest liability may actually be your greatest gift. I am still taking it all in.

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