How Do I Help Someone?

Introduction

We're often in the position where we want to help someone but aren't sure how we can. This happens in many circumstances. We really want to say the right thing, and that can sometimes feel daunting — but we also want to do as much as we can to help. Often the saying and the doing overlap.

This collection of essays is designed to help people with some ideas on what might be done and said under various circumstances. The content has been sourced from a large number of places. Each contribution is prefaced with a photo and a Scriptural verse — not always chosen to match the topic directly, but as simple reminders of God's beautiful creation, and that whatever we do to help happens in a God-helped context.

Largely, the collection is made up of contributions, small and large, from many people. Contributors have been identified where possible; where there's no identification, the writer has been the editor.

What are the contents?

The contents are based on the following sections: four of life's differing stages — Young Families, Young Adults, Middle Age, and Getting Older — and reflections on life's issues, covering Illness, Other Life Events, and a section on You and God.

And just in case a contribution doesn't fit neatly into those categories, there's also a section on General Issues.

Where applicable, contributions mention relevant Scriptures, as the content is firmly grounded in Scripture. Every entry is framed by the same question: "How do I help someone…?" — with the rest of the question naming the specific topic. For example, "How do I help someone with parenting?"

Browse the full contents by life stage or by issue, organised the same way as the original collection.