Thanks to the very valuable support and help in working with leadership coach Darren Ho, I’ve updated the tagline that concisely and clearly describes the need for Christian Asian Mental Health (CAMH)—every Asian American church needs mental health ministry. To serve this urgent need, CAMH provides coaching and resources to help every Asian American church develop and launch its own mental health ministry. Read more at CAMH »
Plus, a new tagline comes with a new CAMH postcard! Would you like a stack of these printed postcards to share with others? Please email me your mailing address and I’ll send you some. Thanks for caring and sharing!
With this email update, there’s also an audio portion with a review of highlights from last month, May 2024—Asian American heritage month and mental health awareness month. (Different people and organizations name the month differently. Plus, its designation has changed over time. Be that as it may.)
How CAMH Matters and Counts
At the Communities of Hope Conference on May 16th, hosted by the Asian American Well-being Collaboratory of Fuller Theological Seminary, I was pleasantly surprised to hear Dr. Jessica ChenFeng’s opening remarks that mentioned CAMH’s Christian Asian counselors directory. She shared about the history of Asian American Christian counseling in this visual timeline below. And she counted over 170 Asian American Christian therapists in California, presently, from camh.network/counselors - how cool is that?!
And from other communications, I’ve heard from people thanking us for CAMH’s Asian American Christian counselors directory being a helpful resource. (I haven’t been counting how many thank you’s, in case you’re wondering.)
Instagram Live with @OnlineCommunitySaddleback on June 7
This Friday, June 7th, at 11am Pacific / 1pm Central / 2pm Eastern, I’ll be chatting with the good people at Saddleback Church’s Online Community about mental health—how to find hope, healing, and help! Follow us on Instagram @onlinecommunitysaddleback and @djchuang
Thrive & Cultivate Summit on June 17-18 • Online
The Thrive & Cultivate online event is designed specifically for pastors and church leaders, providing practical insights and guidance to help you better serve those struggling with mental health challenges. I’ll be one of the many speakers! Learn from experts who share your passion for supporting mental wellness within our faith communities.
Visit thriveandcultivate.com to register for this free virtual summit!
Mental Health & the Church Conference on September 26-27 in Cleveland, Ohio
Key Ministry invites all pastors, church and parachurch ministry staff and volunteers, mental health professionals, educators, family members and Christians called to share the love of Christ with persons impacted by mental health concerns to gather in Cleveland this September 26-27 for their first national Mental Health Ministry Summit.
I believe that we won’t make advances in mental health and the church until we have an annual conference that brings us together regularly to work on this crisis together! Praying that Key Ministry and others will support this pivotal moment.
I just talked with the organizers and they’ve invited me to be one of the speakers—so grateful for this opportunity. I’d love to see you there! And, Kay Warren is also a confirmed speaker! Sign up for updates at keyministry.org/mhatc2024
When Does It Make a Difference?
Thanks for reading to the end of this update. Some of you may be wondering, “What good does raising awareness and attending conferences do?”
Well, every little bit of effort can help people with mental health challenges to take their next step towards health and wellness: someone will be motivated to seek help from a mental health professional (after all, Asian Americans are the least likely of demographic to seek help for their mental health), someone will stop stigmatizing and shaming others for having mental health challenges, or someone will be inspired to help others in their life challenges.
Christian Asian Mental Health cannot do this work alone. Nobody can. We can do more of this work together, because the mental health crisis is increasing for everyone—those who are part of a church, those who are pastors leading the church, and those who are in the neighborhoods where a church is located. You can partner with us by praying, donating, and connecting.
The part of this urgent call that CAMH has identified as strategic for us to do is this: to provide coaching with concierge service, to help as many Asian & Asian American churches as possible, to develop their own mental health ministry.
Why? Because every church is unique and different; Asian Americans are very diverse. One size does not fit all. Furthermore, churches have people who can care and support for others without having a graduate degree or expensive training. (I’m happy to explain more about how this works and why empowering churches can help so more people than other interventions and programs.)
Do you know a church that’d like to learn how to start a mental health ministry? Please get us connected »
— DJ Chuang, Executive Director of Catalyst Wellness Alliance • 949-243-7260
every Asian American church needs mental health ministry