A Fractured Faith Is Still A Faith

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I haven’t posted in about a week which, this time last year, would have been an unheard of occurrence. There’s been no particular reason for this. Work has been busy, but manageable, and I’ve had plenty of opportunities to sit down and write. It’s not even that the creative well has been dry. All you have to do these days is switch on the television news to find a ‘hot topic’ worthy of comment. It’s just…nothing has gripped me enough to ‘put pen to paper.’ Remember when we did that?

So the mojo has been missing. Then I read a tweet last night from a fellow author who is a leading voice on social media regarding mental health issues. She regularly supports and encourages others who are struggling as well as educating on the devastating effects mental illness can wreak on families and their communities. Her book was one of the reasons I decided to write about my own mental health experiences which led to this blog and the ‘Kirkwood Scott Chronicles.’

Well, it turns out this fellow author was going through a tough patch. The support and love her tweet received was immediate and overwhelming. Dozens of people who she had helped these last few years reached out to let her know she was not alone. It made me sit up and think. That’s the reason I started writing. To let those who were struggling know that they were not alone, that there were others out there who understood. That there was hope for even the most fractured faith.

That’s why I started blogging four years ago. Back then, I built up online friendships with fellow bloggers who had, or were going through, tough times. A sense of community developed and we built up daily routines. I don’t talk to many of those people anymore. Some have left WordPress, others have just drifted away. Social media is a fickle mistress, I get that, and I’m as much to blame as anyone else. Circumstances change and folk move on. I just hope they have moved on to a better place.

I realise this blog is my place of introspection. It’s not a place to plug my books, although I’ll always be grateful to those of you who read them. It’s not a place for social or political comment. It’s a safe place where I can bare my soul and expose my demons; and, in doing so, show you that it is possible to survive and thrive. A fractured faith is still a faith, a cracked lighthouse lamp still warns approaching ships of the dangers ahead. That’s why I’m here.

Published by Fractured Faith Blog

We are Stephen and Fionnuala and this is our story. We live in Northern Ireland, have been married for 17 years and have three kids - Adam, Hannah and Rebecca. We hope that our story will inspire and encourage others. We have walked a rocky road yet here we are today, together and stronger than ever. We are far from perfect and our faith has been battered and bruised. But an untested faith is a pointless faith. Just as a fractured faith is better than none at all. We hope you enjoy the blog.

55 thoughts on “A Fractured Faith Is Still A Faith”

  2. Very well said…
    We have no control over happenings …what we can certainly control is our response …people will come and go what will stay with us is our faith in our God and the trust in our ability….
    Stay blessed 🙏 😇

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      1. Back a little over 13 years ago when I was battling breast cancer I wrote a monthly editorial type column for the local paper telling of my journey. I found out from my doctor that column opened many doors and gave her patients the questions to ask that helped them. We may never know who or how many we help. It is merely up to us to try.

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  5. I enjoy your post. Please don’t feel bad; I, too, haven’t written in a long while. Some are because of time, and the other is I am not sure what to write. It is good to hear that you write to bare your soul. It gives me hope that I will have something soon to write l. If I watched tv, then I might have plenty, but for now, I feel lost within my mind like a black hole swirling around and around. I just have to catch that edge to pull myself out.

    Thank you, Karen Carnahan Author http://www.KarenCarnahan.com

    ________________________________

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      1. Also, thank you for inspiring me to let out some of my own junk, in writing. Writing can help one heal. I am currently learning a bit about healing. Thank you, again, for helping me see that holding everything inside might not be the best idea.

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  7. I have to agree that the WordPress community has been a positive place. I appreciate the support I have received as you have. Thanks for sharing your journey with us. Keep on writing.

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    2. I agree, that’s a quote to keep! I hope one day I get to say, “I was one of the first to hear that saying, I remember where I was when I read it on her blog!”.

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        1. The link I’m trying doesn’t work 😉 Suffice to say, I’ve shared that ‘quote’ we like on my FB page and I hope the world sees it. It’s exactly where I am today and I needed it! Many thanks.

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  12. It is telling how alone and insignificant we feel when we draw into ourselves – a habit that has plagued me a great deal lately. It is a dangerous spiral that feeds upon itself – nourished by and nourishing doubt and encouraging a very one-sided often darkened view of who we are. I too recently opened up about a major struggle that spanned much of my life and has shaped the rest of it – despite me earnestly wanting to deny this truth. It has forced me into a dark place more often than not – filled with why’s, what-ifs, regret, envy, fear, failure, and the inability to see beyond and look forward.
    I am grateful for your openness as it has helped me gain the courage to be true to myself and others. Thank you for sharing this journey of imperfect life with me — it is so much more valuable than any like or share of a social media post hungry for attention and driving comparison. A fractured faith is a real faith. “That’s how the light gets in…”

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  17. A mentor of mine once told me we go through seasons in life. Some people will be present for one season, others for several, some right through our entire lives. The impact of each of those people within our lives might be great, or it might be be a small ripple that stays with us as we go about putting one foot in front of the other.

    I often look back on my high school years and university years, and see friends I used to be very close with, but don’t talk to overly much at the moment. We only have so much time to spend, and so much energy to give to relationships in our lives. This does not necessarily mean stepping away from any friendships, but it might mean focussing more on being present with the relationships near us at that time. (Physical proximity being a difficult thing to judge at the moment as the world still moves towards it being a safe thing to do.)

    Thank you for your kindness, and your introspection. I am always encouraged to look inwards in a positive way on my own life after reading any of your writing. 😊

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