HEALING OF MEMORIES
HEALING OF COMMUNITIES
Biblically grounded, scientifically informed, and culturally sensitive trauma care.
In 2019 Simon travelled to Sri Lanka to speak at a Christian conference on suffering and persecution. Within days of his return, 183 Sri Lankan Christians were dead, including 22 children, with hundreds more injured. A series of deadly terrorist bomb attacks had mercilessly targeted Christians celebrating our Lord in churches on Easter Sunday morning.
Following this heartbreaking event, Simon saw firsthand the shattering impact of mental trauma on the Christian community. Of even greater concern, however, was the shocking lack of professional counselling and psychological support available in Sri Lanka. At the time, in a country with a population of 21.4 million people, there were only 18 trained therapists. Only 8 were mentally healthy enough to offer care.
This revelation led Simon to conduct several months of research on the impact of trauma and PTSD in Sri Lanka. By the end of 2019, it was clear that Sri Lankan Pastors, Christians, and other vulnerable communities faced enormous emotional and physical challenges directly related to generational mental trauma. Decades of civil war, a devastating tsunami, and terrorist attacks had taken a heavy toll on the Christian population, and the total lack of healing resources painted a hopeless picture for recovery.
In response, Simon, in collaboration with two psychologists, developed the Planted for Purpose Trauma Recovery Program. From the beginning, it was never intended to replace professional counseling and therapy, but rather it was designed to provide a pathway to hope and healing for those who would otherwise receive no therapeutic support or care.
Biblically grounded and scientifically informed, our collection of tools brings elements of both psychology and scripture together in everyday, accessible language for people with poor education and low literacy skills. The trainers who deliver the program are assessed, educated in the resources and selected by the Project114 leadership team. They must demonstrate not only a thorough understanding of the material but must be mentally and spiritually healthy themselves before commencing their role as trainers and coordinators.
Note, the WHO (World Health Organisation) in May 2025 observed that the need for mental trauma care in war torn nations is at a critical level. The need is even greater for Christians and other minority groups in these countries as they are usually the last to receive access to vital healing resources.
BETWEEN TRAUMA AND FORGIVENESS
As Simon developed our trauma healing resources, he was asked a very difficult question by a pastor. The man was desperately trying to help his church embody the Gospel by forgiving those who had done evil to them. He said, “Simon, how can you help me move my people toward forgiveness and reconciliation with former enemies when we are haunted by the memory of their violence toward us? That day Simon realised that Jesus was calling us to a unique and challenging task. We had to develop resources that synthesised the healing of memories (Trauma Recovery) with the healing of communities (Peace Building, Forgiveness and Reconciliation).
Jesus promises to restore all things, including our memories. As Christians, we are God’s peacemakers on earth, His agents of Christ’s reconciling love (Matthew 5:9, Colossians 1:19-20). Jesus does not expect us to forget injustices done to us. But we cannot be restored into right living before God and neighbour, without having our memories restored also (Romans 12:1). This is why the Gospel helps us “remember well.” At Project114 we do not merely help a person find personal healing from past hurts. As we address the wounds of memory, we must seek to heal the collective wounds of community. Through practices of forgiveness, the gospel invites us to learn how to remember our pasts differently, breaking generational cycles of remorse and revenge. As we help people restore their memories, we are helping them restore communities in the power of the Holy Spirit. Our therapeutic discipleship, combining trauma care with peace building and reconciliation, makes our ministry unique to any other work in this field.
