Fresh Hope For Mental Health

...empowering individuals with a mental health diagnosis to live a rich, full and faith-filled life in spite of having a mental health diagnosis.
Fresh Hope For Mental Health is a Weekly Podcast
Pastor Brad Hoefs, Host

Introducing Refocusing Widows

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Refocusing Widows is a faith-based ministry initiative under the umbrella of Fresh Hope for Mental Health. Imagine a kaleidoscope: a slight twist and a beautiful design suddenly blurs. However, with another slight twist, everything comes back into focus in a lovely new design. This describes becoming a widow. Everything suddenly goes out of focus. Because only another widow can truly understand all that’s involved, we facilitate peer-to-peer focus groups both online and in person. This is the place where personal growth and refocusing happens.
 
We have created ten refocusing principles that are the foundation of the ministry. Each meeting consists of a discussion time centered around a specific issue of being a widow, followed by a focus activity that helps either to process the grief, or to begin to move forward into a new season.
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Hope That Heals the Heart Wounds

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In nearly two decades of vocational ministry, I’ve experienced the wounds and weariness that we pastors endure. Ministry hurts. It’s hard to remain resilient. But, ministry itself is not the issue. It’s the what, how and who. What patterns keep us healthy? How do we maintain a sense of hope? Who are the trusted confidants that come alongside to encourage and exhort us?

 

These are questions I explore with my pastor friends and coaching clients. They are borne out of lessons that I learned the hard way. I went to an excellent seminary (Covenant Theological in St. Louis). I gained a great deal of knowledge.… Read More

When Christmas is Hard

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If the Holidays are hard for you, you’re not alone. In this edition of Fresh Hope for Mental Health Pastor Brad share some tips to help make the holiday season a little easier.

We encourage you to share this podcast with your friends via your social media connections.

After listening to this podcast, we encourage you to email us at info@FreshHope.us with a comment or question that we will share on our next podcast.  

If you are listening to this podcast on iTunes, we encourage you to leave a comment regarding the podcast. Or you can leave a voice message for us on the site:  www.FreshHope4MentalHealth.com… Read More

5 Things to Quit Doing

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On this edition of Fresh Hope for Mental Health Pastor Brad Hoefs talks about 5 things to quit doing now.

We encourage you to share this podcast with your friends via your social media connections.

After listening to this podcast, we encourage you to email us at info@FreshHope.us with a comment or question that we will share on our next podcast.  

If you are listening to this podcast on iTunes, we encourage you to leave a comment regarding the podcast. Or you can leave a voice message for us on the site:  www.FreshHope4MentalHealth.com

Pastor Brad Hoefs, the host of Fresh Hope for Mental Health, is the founder of Fresh Hope Ministries, a network of Christian mental health support groups for those who have a diagnosis and their loved ones.… Read More

5 Questions to ask yourself on a bad day

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In this edition of Fresh Hope for Mental Health Pastor Brad talks 5 questions to ask yourself on a bad day. He talks about things to ask yourself to help get yourself through the hard days and not let yourself become stuck there. 

 

 

We encourage you to share this podcast with your friends via your social media connections.

After listening to this podcast, we encourage you to email us at info@FreshHope.us with a comment or question that we will share on our next podcast.  

If you are listening to this podcast on iTunes, we encourage you to leave a comment regarding the podcast.… Read More

Pastor Brad Hoefs speaks with Fresh Hope ambassador Kayla Warner

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In this episode of Fresh Hope for mental health Pastor Brad Hoefs speaks with Fresh Hope ambassador Kayla Warner

 

Kayla Warner is a Fresh Hope Ambassador and co-leads Fresh Hope and Fresh Hope for Teens groups online and recently began a Fresh Hope for Pre-Teens group that meets online. She is a Certified Health and Wellness Coach and enjoys helping others achieve health in all areas of life especially their mental health. She is working towards being a Certified Mental Health Coach where she can provide short term peer counseling. She enjoys reading, swimming and writing, and published her memoire “The Label Doesn’t Define You: Using Mental Illness for God’s Glory”.… Read More

Holding to Hope: Staying Sane While Loving Someone with a Mental Illness

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If your loved one suffers with mental illness, then Holding to Hope will speak directly to you. Brad and Donna Hoefs use their story of lived experience and realistic examples as they navigate readers through challenging emotions and self-reflection.  Loving someone with mental illness can be lonely and can leave you feeling hopeless, but this book validates the struggle and frustration while painting a future of hope and recovery.  Reading this book will encourage and connect you to a community of people who feel just like you and offer you the support that you are longing for.

 

–Laura Howe BSW, RSW, CAPM

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Processing the Pandemic

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In this edition of Fresh Hope for Mental Health Pastor Brad talks about the global pandemic.  He talks about how important it is for all of us to process our feelings and what we have experienced over the past year.  This past year has been one of great stress, change, political stress, and racial issues, all of which can easily create a traumatic response within even the most laidback type of personality.  We encourage you to give this a listen and take some time personal time to process this past year.
 
Fresh Hope also has available a four-week guide for individuals and small groups to use entitled Processing Together.
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