Contact: Helen Cook, 800-792-1512

WATERLOO, Iowa, May 7 /Christian Newswire/ -- Pastor's wife, mother, author, Jennifer Brost tells all.

After losing her mother-in-law, mother, father, unborn son, and nearly dying herself all in 30 months while in her early 20's, Jennifer slipped back into the suicidal depression that had haunted her for most of her life. She claims she has been symptom-free for over 7 years, thanks in large part to her new understanding of God's relationship to her heartache.

Brost now regards her former thinking about God and hardship as being simplistic. "It was as easy as A causes B. If suffering happened it was because of God's will." While Brost admits that some difficulties might be easily understood, she is challenging the hurting to consider dropping their cut-and-dry ideas. She advocates for a response to pain that admits, "I don't know why" over "It was part of God's plan."

"People should stop blaming God for all suffering because the matter is not crystal clear in the Scriptures. Yes, we are ultimately blessed no matter what happens to us. Yes, God is in control and rules over all. But it is also true that man's actions truly change the course of events. Jesus told us that God does not give us snakes or stones when we ask Him for bread (Matthew 7:9), so when a snake or stone does come, why not scratch our heads instead of jumping to conclusions?"

Brost says that depression is a matter of hopelessness and that it isn't hard to see why it is rampant in our culture. "If God's Will is akin to fatalism, then we are all trapped waiting to see what God will cause or allow next." She adds, "Who could be more trapped, more hopeless, more desperate, than the man or woman whose view of God leads them to wonder if an all-powerful God is working against their efforts to be healthy, happy, and free?"

While Brost continues to suffer her share of blows, she claims that her understanding of this matter keeps her from spiraling toward despair. Her journey and biblical explanation of her thoughts are recorded in "How I Suffered From My Theology: and regained my faith by questioning 3 beliefs." It is available in stores nation-wide.