New Book Examines Core Values in a Time of Crisis

"In When Your Life Is on Fire Erik Kolbell listens, provokes, and most of all, shares with us the enduring lessons and insights of life and faith as realized by a diverse population of thoughtful people. It's a town hall of the soul." —Tom Brokaw

As anxiety and insecurity builds over tragedies like Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, the  Washington state mudslides, and the earthquakes in Los Angeles, Reverend Erik Kolbell, minister, psychotherapist, and author of When Your Life Is On Fire: What Would You Save? (Westminster John Knox Press, April, 2014), offers  sound and calming advice on how to keep our emotional and spiritual balance at times like this.

"When faced with the chaos of uncertainty, it's crucial to know where our certainties are,” says Rev. Kolbell. "Having a firmer understanding of our core values and what we hold dear, can help immeasurably in a time of crisis."

In When Your Life Is on Fire, Rev. Kolbell uses examples of 13 remarkable people in extraordinary circumstances, including Jane Pauley and Alan Alda, to illustrate how by identifying our core values, we can all be more prepared for tragedy, life changing events, or trauma of any kind, and better equipped to navigate the long road back to recapturing our lives. 

 “People get fatigued by tragedy. Survivors have to understand that it is a spiritual marathon and they must be prepared with physical necessities and the emotional tools as well,” explains Kolbell.  

Rev. Kolbell has been a private psychotherapist practicing for nearly 30 years and has been an ordained minister for more than 30 years. He also served as Minister of Social Justice at Riverside Church in New York City. 

Today, Kolbell treats patients who have endured & survived life changing events and can discuss critical loss, what people hold dear when their lives are changed forever, PTSD, and how traumatic experiences influence the lives of those involved and those watching from afar. 

When Your Life Is on Fire is now available for purchase through The Thoughtful Christian and other retailers.

Erik Kolbell is also the author of What Jesus Meant: The Beatitudes and A Meaningful Life and The God of Second Chances, published by Westminster John Knox Press.