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The narrative traces childhood through adulthood via flashbacks, beginning with suffering and illness, including anorexia nervosa, recurrent depression, and years of outpatient treatment. It emphasizes returning to faith through moments of insight, moving from despair to growth, and learning to trust, see, and hear what God intends. 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The preface describes anorexia nervosa and later recurrent depression, alongside hospital admissions and outpatient treatment, framing key moments as invitations toward faith, growth, and 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paradoxes\n\nJOANNA TULLOCH  \n2018  \nCopyright ◎2018 Joanna Tulloch  \nThe moral right of the author has been asserted.  \nApart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study,or criticism or review,as permitted under the Copyright,Designs and PatentsAct 1988,this publication may only be reproduced,stored or transmitted,inany form or by any means,with the prior permission in writing of thepublishers,or in the case of reprographic reproduction in accordance withthe terms oficences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency.Enquiriesconcerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent to the publishers  \nMatador9 Priory Business Park,Wistow Road,Kibworth Beauchamp,Leicestershire.LE80RXTel:01162792299Email:books@troubador.co.ukWeB:www.troubador.couk/matadorTwitter:@matadorbooks  \nISBN 9781789014143  \nBritish Library Cataloguing in Publication Data.A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.  \nPrinted and bound by CPI Group(UK)Ltd,Croydon,CR04YY  \nMatador is an imprintof Troubador Publishing Ltd  \n## PREFACE\n\nThis book tells the story of my spiritual journey and what I have learntfrom it about the unconditional love that is offered to us all,what-ever the problems we have to face in life.It could be seen as a modernPilgrim'Progress designed especially for anyone who is strugglingin theSlough of Despond.It has taken me twenty-five years to complete,butin a sense it covers my whole life with its flashbacks to childhood ex-periences.It is set out as a series of paradoxes,each of which leads to alearning experience:accepting the invitation(and myself),starting tosee and hear what God wanted me to understand,suffering and grow-ing through it,daring to trust,and finally coming to terms with myillness and travelling on.Much of the story is told in verse,with someBible verses and prose flashbacks(in italics)interspersed with this.  \nIn my teens I had anorexia nervosa,and after several unsuccessfuladmissions to hospital in London I was sent to a clinic near Paris;Iwas just turning fourteen.Although this was a terrifying experience,especially at the beginning,it did succeed in that I was able to returnto school after several months,and the illness only recurred at timesof particular stress such as my finals.However,I then developed severerecurrent depression,which has led to eight more hospital admissionsand a lifetime of outpatient treatment.Throughout this time I havestruggled to make sense of my faith,and have been given moments ofinsight that were like an invitation from a gentle gardener to step outof the jungle of life into the garden of his love.  \nI have been a Methodist local preacher for more than thirty years,and my most difficult period ofillness in the 199os coincided with myfirst full decade as a preacher.The invitation itself first came to me atthe beginning of this decade of illness.I believe that the testimony Ihave to give in this book is more powerful than anything I have beenable to say from the pulpit,and hope that it will reach the people whocould most benefit from it.  \nMy special thanks go to the Reverend Bob Whorton for his encour-agement to finish writing The Invitation to the Garden and to make itpublic.I would also like to thank those who have read and commentedon the draft text,including John and Freda Cammack,Gilli Hanna,David and Clare Matthews,Dr Stephen Merson,Mary Ronaldson,Paul and Wendy Spray,and Hannah Stammers,and to all the helpfuland friendly staff at Matador.Most ofall Iam grateful to my husbandGeorge Tulloch for his constant love and support,and especially forcopy editing,typesetting,and proofreading.  \n*  \nSeveral short extracts from this work were previously published asindividual poems in my earlier poetry collection A Reflection of God(Matador,2014).  \nCONTENTS  \nPrologue:The Garden(1)  \n1.St","cbCaifBIXoX2aqa5","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaifBIXoX2aqa5","pdf",2213294,76,"English","# PREFACE\n# CONTENTS\n## Prologue: The Garden (1)\n## 1. Starting the journey: Accepting\n## The first paradox\n## 2. Finding the path: Seeing and hearing\n## The second paradox\n## Interlude 1: The shadow\n## 3. Planted in the dark: Suffering and growth\n## The third paradox\n## Interlude 2: Revisiting\n## 4. Nowhere to place your feet: Trusting\n## The fourth paradox\n## 5. A chain of moments: Travelling\n## The fifth paradox\n## Epilogue: The Garden (II)","[{\"question\":\"What is the book’s main spiritual focus?\",\"answer\":\"The book centers on the author’s spiritual journey and what she learned about the unconditional love offered to everyone, even through life’s difficulties.\"},{\"question\":\"How is the story structured?\",\"answer\":\"It is laid out as a series of paradoxes, each leading to a learning experience, and much of the narrative is told in verse with Bible verses and prose flashbacks.\"},{\"question\":\"Does the author’s personal illness play a role in the journey?\",\"answer\":\"Yes. The preface describes anorexia nervosa and later recurrent depression, alongside hospital admissions and outpatient treatment, framing key moments as invitations toward faith, growth, and trust.\"}]","The Invitation to the Garden - A Mystical Journey - Preface | PDF",1790682360,117]