I enquired whether they were intending to part or might possibly get together again-

"Malcolm, First off, my wife and I are getting back...she and my son, are coming (back from the US...that is were I am originally from...I moved to the UK one year ago) next week. We both realized that we were being self centered, and were not being grateful to God for all we have....especially the forgiveness of our sins. We decided to focus on God, and stop living in the flesh...and your insights will help us do that...the truth does set people free. There were many things working, but I would say the book, and its revelation about our nature was definately the turning point and major reason for our reunion. It made us look at things in a new and sustainable way...so again many thanks."
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From Rev. Dr. X - (April 2008)
"Dear Mr. Bowden,
A few years ago I read (and utterly adored) your True Science agrees with the Bible, but have only just come across your excellent website. I loved listening to your lecture on depression, which was immensely helpful, and which I am now pointing many others to. Given what you have said there, I wonder if you might be able to help me: I have just learnt that a (Christian) friend of mine is suffering from severe --------. Do you have any material that might help?
With many thanks and warmest best wishes for a most appreciated ministry,
....
"Many thanks for your email, your wisdom and the time you took to respond..... I have to say, there is something ironic about the fact that your material on depression and psychology always leaves me especially joyous. I think it is the fact that you are so clear that depression is a departure from the healthy norm that works as a helpful reminder of the joy of being a Christian. So thank you for that."
[Regarding the opposition to TBC and creation books] Given the state of the church in this country, I am not altogether surprised, but that is a condemnation of the church and not your books. It is the difficulty when serving up such strong counter-cultural meat. I have encountered extraordinary hostility when I have voiced certain conservative theological opinions (especially those that revolve around the issues of creation), though I am optimistic that the younger generation are increasingly suspicious of the claims of science, enabling many of the younger Christians I teach to be more happily and radically counter-cultural on such issues.
The people I have pointed to your material have been pastors who have no vested interests; instead, their gospel-concern has meant they seem generally to have received your material warmly (in fact, more often, very warmly).
I would love to have a disc of your talks if that would be OK, and also a copy of BAGFY, which, you guessed rightly, I have not read. I wonder also if you might be able to send me some spare copies of that and True. There are a number of people I would be keen to baptise in these waters. Anything you are happy to send could be posted to:-----
I must say thank you, not only for the research and work you have done, but for your bravery in holding out our foolish message so clearly when all around I see the wisdom of the world being taught in the church. If a generation of pastors and Christians can be raised who are more sola scriptura (as I am seeing in some places), then I am sure that truly biblical counselling has a more popular future. For that I will work and pray.
Warmly,
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BAGFY OPENS THE EYES OF A PSYCHOLOGIST!
I received this from a missionary working Europe in May 2006.
"We have a psychologist called P who needs our prayers ; she is reading BAGFY and is going through a crisis as she realises that she has been systematically lied to. She is applying BAGFY principals in her work but faces severe resistance from psychiatrists who are reluctant to disemploy (?!) themselves!
P is a Serious Christian who has sussed the antichristian thinking behind the PSY-industry ( for that is what it is ) and wants to awaken others to the heinous misinformation. I am hoping that she will eventually offer to translate the book as we have several Christians involved in her kind of work and there is a mission field out there."
Comment - she is not the first person involved in the psychiatric/psychological professions to realise after reading "Breakdowns are good for you" that they have been "systematically lied to"! All our counter arguments are suppressed, but one day there may be a "breakthrough".
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DEALING WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA WITHIN THE FAMILY - THE DIFFICULTIES.
In February 2006 I was emailed by a lady whose mother was schizophrenic. The mother had lived with her grandparents who had turned her against her parents, saying they did not love her. This had resulted in anger against her parents but the guilt involved seems to have developed into schizophrenia, which the daughter had only recently recognised.
How she came across my website was intriguing. She had been fasting and praying the whole day wondering what to do about it, but -
".....as i was praying, i had this pressing need to go online - i tried to ignore it thinking surely i should spend more time in prayer but the urge grew more & more - it was almost as if God was telling me to stop praying & get moving for he had things to show me...i went online & typed 'christian counselling + schizophrenia' & yours was the first site to come up & the keywords that were thrown up on Google were 'schizophrenia does not exist' or words to that effect - i was intrigued & that is how i discovered your site & i praise & thank God for that."
I found the way in which she was directed to my website very moving as that has never happened to me before.
She bought BAGFY and fully agreed with its views. I also sent the DVD of the three talks. She visited her mother who at first denied everything, but then started to make excuses for her behaviour. What was interesting was - "She also mentioned something very interesting - she said that she knows there is something wrong with her brain because it was whilst she was in university that she first felt her brain 'give way' under the strain of studying intensely coupled with a night of rigorous coffee drinking to keep awake whilst studying. I mentioned to her about what you said - schizophrenic cases usually surface in young adults in university etc.( i was glad i read the book otherwise i would never have made that connection). She didn't seem to agree that it was all a result of her own choice to act mad to escape the responsibilities of university life."
[MB comment. This may have been just a chemical reaction within her brain -stress and coffee? She finished her course and studied further successfully. Whether this had a long term effect resulting in schizo is difficult to say.]
She watched the DVD with her mother, but she said she "felt tired" and left the room. She has asked her father to watch the DVD and follow it up as best he can. Unfortunately, she could not stay with her mother, and there has been no significant improvement so far. I have suggested that her father should continue the pressure to get her to behave responsibly and maturely."
MB-This highlights the major problem of TBCounsellors dealing with schizophrenia - the difficulty in getting the person to face up to their past guilt - as mentioned on p.33 of BAGFY. This is the absence of having any "control" over a person - we can only advise. As schizophrenics have been living a lie for many years, we cannot force them to change and there is little to tempt them to start on the hard work of facing up to their responsibilities. You can lead a horse to water, but ...
I have asked to be kept up to date to see if there is any improvement. We can only pray that now her daughter has confronted her with her guilty feelings that are the root of her problem, that she will meditate on this and "come to her senses" at long last. She now knows that her secret is "out".

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May 2006 - Minister's first use of TBC is successful.
I was contacted by a minister who was keen to use TBC. The subject of fear of other people was raised and he said he had found great benefit from reading Edward Welch's book "When People are Big and God is Small" (Presbyterian and Reformed 1997). I bought this and found it an excellent study on how to lose a fear of people AND WHAT THEY THINK OF YOU! I strongly recommend it to all who have a problem of being timid and fearful of the opinions of other people. Quotes "We never expect that using people for our desires leaves us enslaved to them" and "The person who fears God fears nothing else". I said how highly I thought of the book. He answered -
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Hello Malcolm
I am glad you found Welch's book useful. It really helped me. I am slowly ploughing through BAGFY. It has been so helpful. The man I have been counselling using the techniques has made amazing progress. I was able to face him up to three areas in his life where he was basically selfish. He went home and a few days later confessed it all to the Lord asking for forgiveness. When he came to see me next time he was like a different person. He is regularly reading his bible and now praying for his wife to come to the Lord. He is also attending the church every week. I am still meeting with him and we have been looking at how God reveals himself in the Old Testament. It is amazing to see what God has done for him and to be able to be instrumental in that by God's grace.
God willing I will be starting the course soon. I have just had rather a busy period. What do I need to do about joining the ATBC?
Every blessing
[LATER]
Hello Malcolm
Obviously this is the first time I have used TBC although I do know of another lady in Wales who was helped using it.
What is interesting to notice is how the 'moderen counselling' methods have affected the churches understanding of the bible. It seems we put the cart before the horse and allow secular trends to determine our interpretation of the bible. I have also had trained counselors, who are Christrians, saying that not every case can be cured and that this is a very simplistic approach. I am convinced that when Paul wrote to Timothy and said that scripture was given that we might be complete and equiped for every good work, that he meant it. We do hold in our hands a rich treasure from God, who loves us and has given us all we need that we might live joyful Christian lives.
Please be encouraged to continue.
Every blessing
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18 February 2006
TWO CASES OF SCHIZOPHRENIA
It is rare that I am asked to help with schizophrenic cases as they are immediately taken into medical care, given powerful drugs and are then considered well beyond any help from counselling. I was recently emailed by a lady who had read my website comments on schizophrenia and had told a friend classified as one, who is keen to discuss her case with me. She also related an incident that took place several years ago - as follows;
"I told our Bible study about your site last night, and two of the gals wrote down your address, and you'll likely be hearing from them. One of them is on medication for schizophrenia, and we've been praying for her healing. I approached the subject gentle, not wanting to insult her, but she was very open, having suffered so long. I prefaced your site information, telling her about this before the others arrived, and found she was willing that it be part of an open discussion with them. I'd had some good experience with nouthetic counseling [effectively the same as TBC] Jay Adams-style of my own, one with a neighbour, that I shared with her."
The contact with a neighbour was related as follows -
I had seen my neighbours' son Tim outside their house standing with a broom in hand, staring vacantly at both the start and at the end of a four hours of errands. I checked with another neighbour and found that Tim was going "crazy" was the family's consensus. He was selling all his belonging, would speak of pink elephants he was seeing, and ask others if they saw them, and asked a lot about "what time is it," not good signs of mental health. Tim, had graduated from college, landed a dream job as a recreation director, but then lost it before it began after the manager died.
This other neighbour said that he was bitter toward his parents anyway, and somehow blamed them in general for his life's problems (a pretty cold couple - I've been friendly with many of our neighbours through the years, but even after living next door for several decades, they were still very distant. Peter the husband was vice-president of the company that owns still our town paper - and they know I'm Christian which I am sure is far from a plus with their extreme left views).
I went over and brought a piece of cake to Tim, and shared Jay Adams experience with the mental ill, particularly that story of the catatonic 30 year old man who was set free after 10 years of catatonia after Jay and Mowrer together told him he had a choice whether to waste the next ten years of his life like he had these years, having chosen this state over dealing with the extreme stress he felt of being pulled between pleasing his parents and his college friends when his grades vs his play part pulled him two opposite directions.
I also told Tim my story of being born again, of the glory of Christ, the joy and adventure of being one of God's Kingdom ambassadors, and assured him that God had great plans for his life, and urged him not to waste it letting bitterness and devastation of his job loss mess his own life up for the next umpteenth years of his own life. I said I heard how he was going crazy, even as he exhibited those behaviours (he'd asked me the elephant and time questions frequently during our two hour talk) - which I verbally connected to him as signs of this choice he was presently making. I told him that I could still see some lucidity in his eyes, and urged him to make a better choice than that other young man had, before he ended up wasting years of his life, too.
His Mom, Christine, called me after I left and asked me what on earth I had talked to Tim about, as no one had been able to talk to him in weeks. After I told her, and she briskly thanked me for my concern, but said that their friend, who was a psychiatrist, had had dinner with Tim the night before and they were having him committed that very week. I told her that God doesn't waste my time, and that I was expecting to see a miracle happen with Tim, that he would hear and make a better choice. She thanked me again, repeated her opinion and hung up.
But the next day Chris' Dad came across the street to where I was sitting outside with another neighbour, and said, "Lynn, I don't know what you told Tim, but we do know that he turned the corner last night, and that we will not have to commit him now, and I want to thank you." It was one of my life's more awesome wondrous experiences. Tim moved to CA, and they were estranged for years, but since Peter died a few years ago, Christine told me she has made several trips out to visit with Tim since. I still pray for her, him, and the other son. This story awed Helen, and will be part of why she will likely write you soon."
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A GRATEFUL EMAILER
In December 2005 I was contacted by an American who suffered from depression asking for the free sheets on TBC and the free disc. In my reply email I said -
"If I may say very briefly that the key to curing depression is to forget yourself and become TOTALLY involved in helping others! Depression is really thinking about yourself too much - how people react to YOU, whether they like YOU etc."
He replied - "Thanks for your very quick reply. I agree with you 100% about depression being overly pre-occupied with self. I guess too often we want to blame something or someone else for our failure to take responsible for our decisions and behavior. When I came across your web site the other day and read some of the articles it hit me right in the face that I'm really the problem. There are several others in the church I attend who are struggling and they have turned to medications, but the meds have only made things worse. I'll use these materials to help others. Thank you for your help and God bless you for helping others." In a subsequent email he said he had ordered BAGFY from WesleyOwen. "I think it'll be a great help."
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WHAT IS GOING ON IN OUR PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITALS.
The following was received in May 2004.

"I am qualified as a psychiatric nurse and as a nurse teacher but only taught psychiatric nursing care for a few years preferring to stay with general health care because I had difficulty accepting the mainstream dogma of a biological basis in mental illness. My earliest concerns were generated by not finding mental illness in the Bible coupled with the realization that most of what I observed on the psychiatric wards was sinfulness and selfishness. It was often remarked by nurses that so-and-so learned this or that symptom from another patient.

I also noticed the undercurrent of guilt in many personal histories and the Freudian guilt-avoidance techniques of carers. Indeed many patients, including those with depression and schizophrenia, had an easily demonstrated sinful (often shameful) background. The dominant sins relating to sexual, financial and religious anomalies.

As you suggest, the cloak of mental illness appears to be too convenient. However, I do believe that under certain conditions we may experience strange and disturbing behaviours. In this I would include sleep-deprivation and chemically induced disturbances of the mind – e.g. from hormonal, electrolyte or drug imbalances."

[MB- I agreed with his last sentence, but pointed out that they were chemical/metabolic imbalances that can result from extreme depression, and were not directly due to stress which is the major cause of depression.]

BAGFY p.53 - Nurse working in a psychiatric ward -

"Another Christian psychiatric nurse found that Dr. Law's lecture and chart completely changed her view of mental illness. She challenged her patients and was amazed by the number who admitted they were responsible for their behaviour. This nurse was desperate to leave the profession, referred to the sexual orientation of many of the staff and commented, "The Devil is having a field day in psychiatry."

A manic-depressive - "My recent experience has been of a mini-breakdown based on selfish behaviour and exhaustion from having sent out my project MH AT CH [MB - the leaflet I received that he had sent to 8,900 churches!]. I rebelled, quit, seemed to have no purpose. This whole experience can be seen in the perspective of your book to be fully a self pity "party" and a resentful reaction. Your book was like reading the script of a play after once again going through a breakdown. God allows us to go through these things to bring us to a new place, a new commitment.

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From America -
Dear Mr. Bowden:
After finding a link to and reading your excerpted article from, "Breakdowns Are Good For You!", I purchased the book, and "True Science Agrees with the Bible."
I devoured the first book quickly. This book was a great help to me, Mr. Bowden, and I wanted you to know what a blessing it has been in helping me to understand things I have grappled with for years.
My mother has been receiving disability for "mental illness" for 25+ years. It has been obvious to me for a long time that she is merely spoiled, selfish, and devious, but I could never quite grasp and articulate with 100% surety what it was I was seeing in her...
Mom is still in the gall of bitter self-deception, but I did talk with her on many occasions before she got so sick, and your book was a tremendous help. I also gave her a printed out copy of your on-line article [Dr. Law's article "Breakdowns are good for you"]
I am currently reading the second book, and I am really enjoying the history.
Thanks so much for your efforts, Mr. Bowden. I really appreciate you and Dr. Law.
Sincerely in Christ,
S.B. Florida USA
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From M. Story (Finland) "When I marked up the important parts of one copy for a Finnish friend to read, the reaction was IMMEDIATE and TERRIBLY positive The reader works with homeless alcoholics and has seen an immediate change with the application of HIS new attitude... I will let you know more as soon as I hear more!
-------------------------------------------
In correspondence with one member, they related their local experience of friends reading BAGFY as follows;
"She thinks every Pastor ought to read it, and has used the book to tell their people her own story confirming self-pity as the cause of her own past behaviour and the Lord Jesus and His word as Being the Only Cure for sin and the overcoming of these matters."
[NOTE; It is one thing for a counsellor to claim that their method had "cured" a person, but when that person themself gets up and admits IN PUBLIC that the root of their problem had been self-pity, then the effect is far more powerful, and encourages others to look at their own problems very carefully.]

(Also-) "when I first showed her the cover of Bagfy and pointed my finger at the bottom line question, "Is self-pity the cause of "mental illness"?" it was C**, who as soon as she read it looked up and said, "V**, I know it is!"

( Also - )She saw the book for the first time on Wednesday and is ordering a copy to send to the Christian people who trained her in counselling. Her comment: "How, I wish we had this book when I was training!" I gather she is thinking of sending a copy of the tapes to all the people she trained with. The chart has already been handed out among their church mid-week meeting people with plenty of 'talk'.

(Also-) " ten minutes or so before their evening meetings, she had got a call from one of their people who had nearly succeeded in killing herself last year .... She was in a state and C** said something to her to which she got the reply 'I am only human.....' The next day this lady turned up (as she later admitted ) 'hating' C**'s 'guts' but after the two of them had sat down and drawn pictures in silence for about twenty-minutes, the questions began to come beginning with 'How dared you speak to me like that?' C** showed her the book and began reading her a bit out of it. She picked it up for herself and it opened up at the page where the heading comes 'I'm only human!' C** said she screamed 'that's what I said to you!' They went to the Bible references and started reading them. She said, 'I want this book.'

Letter - "I left my copy with the * church... As it has already proved so beneficial in my life I trust it may have an input on theirs, but I would also like a replacement copy. I do hope you have had a positive response - I expect you either love it or hate it. I am in my 70's and have led an up and down existence for years, despite becoming a Christian and having had endless, endless ministry over many years. Your no hold barred approach was what I required to set me finally on the starting line. A lot of running still to do but thanks to your writing I am off to a good start. My thanks indeed - when we meet I shall thank you both personally!

One counsellee said "I wish I had read your book earlier. It would have made me realise how badly I was behaving all that time."

Letter - "I sent copies to my Vicar son... and my barrister grandson-in-law... I also gave a copy to ... Dr.... You are touching on a raw subject... for a doctor. Stress is a "niche market". Income would vanish if your book was taken to heart!" C.S.
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ATBC ISSUE 9 (PART)
[The suggestion had been made that after hearing all about the problem, and seeing where root cause lay, the counsellee(s) could be asked "What do you want first - the good news or the bad? The bad news would be that the problem basically lay with themselves, NOT OTHERS. The good news is that because THEY have the problem, THEN THEY CAN NOW ACTUALLY DO SOMETHING ABOUT CURING THEMSELVES. This raised some discussion and the following incident was related by one of the members in the ATBC issue No. 9]

Now let me mention a small coincidence. I had got out my laptop to reply to your email when the phone rang. Could I see a couple whose marriage (of 3 months only!) was in danger of collapsing? I went round immediately. I listened for about 25 minutes when it quickly became obvious what the real problem was. Following that, I made all the major points that are given in Bagfy. I did not actually say "Do you want the good news or bad news?"; as I suggested, but I can assure you that had I actually put this to them it would have been fully acceptable. Several times I had to stop the man and point out that he was blame-shifting, excusing himself or simply trying to be "one up" on his wife, and he fully accepted it. A retired doctor present who had counselled in much the same way agreed that I had made all the major points that should have been raised for them to act on. I found that when I faced both of them with their responsibility, they both responded very positively and agreed.

I think that if people can see that you are personally interested in them and really keen for them to improve, they will accept a very great deal of "straight talking". There is also the subtle acceptance of authority of the counsellor which I became conscious of during the meeting. This can be very heady and needs to be handled with very great care. I several times referred to God and His standards for people's behaviour to show that it was His requirements not mine that I was presenting to them to follow.

Four days later, they were talking to a visiting speaker and I sat and listened as the man repeated to him all the things I had been saying verbatim. Particularly he said that if he has a problem, it is his responsibility - not anyone else's! I said nothing, just sat there quietly and smiled inwardly a little. (I have just returned from meeting them a second time and they want to see me once or twice more. They have really improved their attitude.)

..........................................

The nurse (p.53) also confronted her patients that they were responsible for their behaviour and she was astonished that they all agreed! Robert confronted the "post natal depressed mother" (p.26) with a very unacceptable diagnosis but she admitted that he was right and did not walk out!

......................................................

Well - so much about the "confrontational" aspects of TBC. Please - would members respond about this very important subject. It is the major stumbling block in the eyes of those anti-TBC, yet I still think that handled properly it can give a major breakthrough where conventional counselling has had minimal effect in making a lasting cure. I would hope that we can counsel in such a way that THE COUNSELLEES DO NOT NEED TO RETURN. They can be given clear guidelines on how to behave in an unselfish, unself-centred and outgoing manner that will not only get them out of their present problems but will last them the rest of their lives.

_____________________________________ End of ATBC issue 9

SCHIZOPHRENIA - TWO CASES HELPED (Sept. 05)
A correspondant sent the following;
"Dear Malcom Bowden, My name is N. P. writing to thank you for the Biblical Truths on Schizophrenia as it is encouraging to read how we are going on with a precious woman (48yrs) who was entrusted into our home.... K. came from a home rejected from her natural Mum at 4 years old. then her Dad married again. I believe God is working in K's life and has released K for His purposes..... At one stage I thought I was being harsh with K, but now realise with what you have shared here on site that it's been true. So I thank the Holy Spirit for giving me the right words to speak out in love and with authority also.
I appreciate these truths about Schizophrenia, also K has a psycotic condition. Have printed out the information on Depression also. It is helpful too. .... Hope to read or hear more. Thank you again Malcom. Thank God He is control of our lives because we couldn't do this without His strength, love, compassion, grace and mercy.
Kindest regards
NP

SECOND LATER EMAIL;
"thank you for the quick response to my letter Malcom....May God Bless You abundantly. Just to share with you, recently a brother in Christ Jesus and I come together in prayer as a woman above him was also classed as being schizophrenic. Had met her previously. She came down that day and shared her heart / history of abuse etc and has come to know Jesus as her Saviour and Lord. Received the Holy Spirit. She is being transformed, it's just amazing grace. How Great is the Father Almighty, Everlasting God, Oh, what a merciful God we serve. Jesus Christ is so faithful and just. Amen.
Kindest Regards,
N

[MB-Sooo, schizophrenia CAN be cured! (But don't tell the psychiatrists)]

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