Comfort in the Ashes: Explorations in the Book of Job to Support Trauma Survivors - Michelle K. Keener

\nHowever you define it, deconstruction is impossible to deny. Ian Harber knows the fear and grief of deconstruction firsthand. Here, he tells the story of his own process of deconstruction and reconstruction over ten years and lays out a vision for a faith environment that can foster genuine reconstruction through healthy relationships.\n \n \nNavigating Trauma in the Church\n \nIt's time for church leaders and believers to stop offering prettily packaged responses from a safe distance. It's time for us to sit in the ashes with the hurting, our Sunday clothes covered in dirt and grime, our faces lined with tears. Trauma brings people to the ash heap, so that is where the church needs to go.\n \nThe church should serve as a refuge for people in pain. And yet, we often end up unintentionally causing more hurt to trauma survivors. Theological platitudes and positive thinking aren't simply dismissive to those who suffer, but they inevitably retraumatize the wounded. Does the Bible have anything practical to offer for church leaders as they engage the pain in their congregations?\n \nBiblical scholar Michelle Keener shows us that the book of Job provides embodied and practical answers for the church today. In this incredible tool for ministry leaders and trauma survivors alike, Keener offers: \n \n- deep wisdom at the intersection of trauma theory and the book of Job for Christian communities \n- reflection questions for ministry practitioners and those walking alongside those who have experienced trauma \n- engagement with the idea of a shattered worldview and how to overcome the effects of that experience. \nComfort in the Ashes helps leaders navigate their own trauma and gives practical guidance for supporting others whose worlds are falling apart. God meets us in our ashes and our pain. It's time for the church to do the same.\n