A Chat with Chris Morris

Good Morning, Readers!

It isn’t often that I share non-fiction works with you, but I find that this one could be exceptionally good. 

Trekking Toward Tenacity is a book that I know is written to help you raise mentally healthy children according to Biblical standards, but it could be good for you too. 

Psalms 139 holds a very special place in my heart as it was the catalyst God used to heal my own mental health issues. 

So, without further ado, lets take a seat at The Back Porch table and have a chat with the author, Chris Morris.

Welcome to Back Porch Reads, Chris. It is a pleasure to have you with us on this chilly morning. Tell us a little bit about Trekking Toward Tenacity.

I was reading Psalm 139 during my devotional time one morning, and lightning struck. As I read each verse, I saw how it could be applied to parents looking to teach their children resilience. I’ve never had something quite like this happen before, and I mostly think it will never happen again. I quickly sat down with my laptop and started jotting down notes from the psalm. Within an hour, I had an early version of what became the outline of the book that we presented to Leafwood Publishers for the book Trekking Toward Tenacity. All I can say is that it seems that God really wanted these ideas out in the world.

My writing process for Trekking Toward Tenacity was as unique as the way the spark came to me. I decided to conduct a bit of a focus or efficiency experiment. I reserved an Air BnB in one of my favorite cities—Portland, Oregon—and made plans to spend at least seven hours every day writing for eight days. I wasn’t sure if this was going to be successful or not, but honestly I really needed it to go well. My deadline for the first draft of the book came right in the middle of the busiest season I had in my business. I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to carve out any time or (more importantly) energy to focus on drafting a book if it didn’t happen in Portland. Thankfully, the experiment was a wild success. At the end of eight days, I had drafted the entire book, nearly 50,000 words. I’m not convinced this will ever happen again, but it was a wild ride to go from nothing to a completed manuscript in just over a week. The craziest part is that there weren’t many significant adjustments made during the editing process either, so what I drafted ended up being pretty solid too.

In today’s world, it can be nearly overwhelming to be a parent. The news stations blare some new crisis at us every other day. Social media is a death-dealing machine for our kids at times. Our jobs probably require more from us now than at any other point in history. And yet, we are supposed to know how to help our kids be resilient with their faith and their mental health? It feels like too much. Trekking Toward Tenacity is, I hope, a fieldbook for parents to navigate this crazy world with some intentionality and grace. In earthy, gritty ways, it show them how to support their kids and help them become tenacious despite the odds stacked against them. My biggest message for parents is that they can be equipped to be the guide for their kids in this wacky world. The truth is, they already have most of the tools they need.

I want my readers to know that the darkness in the world isn’t greater than the hope they can find in Christ and in the words of the Bible. I want them to be able to combine the knowledge of child development with some practical discipleship tools and become coaches for their kids, giving their kids a full toolbox of ways to become and remain tenacious. I want these parents to learn how to fight for their kids, and to teach their kids to fight for themselves.

I have three projects that I hope to pitch in the next six to nine months. The first is a devotional that I’m calling Pray Like Paul. This devotional gathers all the actual prayers from Paul found in the epistles and the Book of Acts and coaches us all how to pray the way that Paul prayed. After all, who better to learn from?

 (Ooo, I like that.)

The next book is tentatively titled Help Me Feel Safe: How to Practically Welcome the Struggling into Your Circle. This book contrasts the reality of isolation in the mental health arena with the call to radical commitment to community in the church. It blazes a path for individual Christians to follow that will allow them to become sanctuaries of safety for those struggling with mental health challenges. By walking through Romans 12, Help Me Feel Safe creates a list of ways that everyday Christians can make a difference in mental health communities.

 (I love it)

My last work in progress is a bit different than the others, and it’s like nothing I’ve ever written or read. Hurting Theology, Healing Theology: How Right Thinking About God Can Help Rescue the Mentally Ill is a work of practical contextual theology. This book takes the often-heady waters of theology and makes them accessible to everyone by ditching the unnecessarily complex language and speaking plainly about the core tenets of the Christian faith. Beyond that, this contextual theology applies the concepts that are integral to Christianity specifically to those with mental illnesses. For example, instead of simply trying to explain the doctrine of the Trinity, Hurting Theology, Healing Theology speaks to how all persons of the Trinity are fundamentally unified in their love for all people, specifically those in mental illness communities.

(Yes! I can’t wait!) 

Sorry, but these books hit home all the areas that are important to this Bible teacher/fiction author. I can not wait to see these book come out. They are timely for sure and will be a great asset to scripture as we all navigate the world we live in.

I pray that the words flow freely and supernaturally for you. I also hope this tour blesses you, Chris, and that many God’s hand on the words He gave you to write.

Readers, please keep reading to hear more from Chris Morris and his book Trekking Toward Tenacity.

Grace and Peace to you all,

Melissa S. Wardwell

About the Book

Book: Trekking Toward Tenacity: Your Family’s Roadmap to Stronger Mental Health

Author: Chris Morris

Genre: Parenting / Christian Living / Mental Health

Release date: September 24, 2024

Empower your children with the gift of tenacity through these practical, meaningful tools for their mental and spiritual health.

Trekking toward Tenacity walks through Psalm 139 verse by verse, discovering how we can help our children develop mentally healthy habits. The goal is to coach our kids to be more tenacious because we live in a tumultuous world. It can be hard to stay focused on God and on mentally healthy habits in that tumult, but this book gives concrete ways to help kids to do just that.

By teaching parents practical application steps to implement with kids of all ages, ranging from preschool to adolescent, this book will give them new tools to support their families in the quest for better mental health. It will provide rock-solid encouragement for parents who are stressed out and wondering if they’re making the right choices for their families. It provides counterintelligence against the onslaught of increased risks of mental health challenges for children and young adults today.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Chris Morris is a certified mental health coach dedicated to promoting understanding of mental health issues within the church. Because of a lifelong struggle with depression and suicidality, Chris became committed to breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health and encouraging others to seek after holistic health.

As a writer and speaker, Chris has shared his personal story and insights with audiences across the country, inspiring many individuals to take control of their own health, break free from poor theological teaching placed upon them, and seek the support they need. He has published several books on mental health, the most recent being Resilient and Redeemed. His work has been featured in a number of media outlets, including CrossWalk, The Mighty, and Fathom Magazine.

Chris is deeply committed to creating a more compassionate and supportive world and church for individuals living with mental health issues. Through his writing and speaking, he is a powerful voice for change and a beacon of hope for those in need.

More from Chris

I literally wrote the book that I wish I had 20 years ago when I was raising my kids. Being a parent today is tumultuous. Especially in a post-COVID world, mental health is a strong contender for the biggest challenges facing our kids. There are plenty of books out there that give us theories on how to raise our kids, and plenty of books that are full of devotionals to walk through with our kids, but shockingly few books dedicated to coaching our kids to have tenacity.

In my experience, tenacity might be the biggest difference maker between seeing our kids move successfully through life and floundering. It’s a given that challenges will come, whether those struggles look like not making the varsity basketball team or something more serious. We simply have to help our kids know how to walk through the missed opportunities and hard times that will inevitably come into their lives.

Trekking Toward Tenacity does just that. We walk through Psalm 139 verse by verse and pull out practical, meaningful tips, tricks, and conversations to have with our kids to help them develop resilience. News flash: there’s no magic potion we can give our kids that gives them bounce-backability. Instead, this is found through conversation about life and God.

My favorite part of this book was writing the age-appropriate activities in the center of each chapter. Instead of only giving you theology or child psychology data without any practical application, Trekking Toward Tenacity includes specific activities you can try out with your kids. There’s obviously no guarantee that these ideas will work, but I can tell you that they worked for other kids. These are pie-in-the-sky concepts, but activities that have been tried in the real world.

If you’re looking for a book that will arm you with skills to coach your kids on how to develop tenacity in their lives, this is the book for you!

Blog Stops

Its Mama Safe, January 16

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, January 17

A Reader’s Brain, January 18 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, January 19 (Author Interview)

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, January 19

Artistic Nobody, January 20 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, January 21

Aryn the Libraryan, January 22

Back Porch Reads, January 23 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, January 24

Simple Harvest Reads, January 25 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, January 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, January 26

Fiction Book Lover, January 27 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, January 28

A Modern Day Fairy Tale, January 29 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate his tour, Chris is giving away the grand prize of a $75 Amazon gift card, a copy of Trekking Toward Tenacity, and a free Audible copy of my previous book Whispers in the Pews: Voices on Mental Illness in the Church!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.