Since 2015, I have been flattened to the ground by loss, been left zapped of all energy by the death of a loved one, and seen friends and co-workers who I talked to one week be dead a week later. I never knew this kind of grief before 2015. Sure, I had mourned the loss... Continue Reading →

When I read, I very seldom write notes in the margin. I just like to highlight or underline and go about my reading. In the last book I read, I only wrote one thing in the margin. It was more a prayer than a note. I wrote, “Lord, don’t ever let me fall victim to... Continue Reading →

Complete surrender is the ultimate goal of the Christ follower.  Some might say, “Why is that necessary? Doesn’t that seem extreme?” Perhaps we work against this notion because we think we have found a loophole in this discipleship thing. We have been presented a version of the Gospel that is, in Dallas Willard’s words, the... Continue Reading →

My days, which are often filled with worry about what people think of me, constant replays of conversations and scenarios that I wish had gone better, and mental rehearsals of future discussions and plans, leave me full of anxiety about what has already happened and dread for what will happen. But, when I turn to... Continue Reading →

Singer-songwriter and writer, Carolyn Arends, tells the story of how music artist Rich Mullins would answer fans that would ask him how they could understand God’s will for their lives. According to Arends, Mullins would say, “I don’t think finding God’s plan for you has to be complicated. God’s will is that you love him... Continue Reading →

As my daughter starts her new chapter at college this fall, I wrote this as something I needed to hear when I was her age: You will question your faith more in the next four years more than you probably ever will. That is normal and perfectly okay. As Frederick Buechner says about his own... Continue Reading →

Henri Nouwen takes the greatest lessons of the Christian experience and presents them in ways that are digestible and inspiring. That is a difficult feat. His classic, The Return of the Prodigal Son, is dripping with gems that I can’t stop thinking about. For example: “The world’s love is and always will be conditional.” “‘Addiction’... Continue Reading →

What spiritual education are you getting?  We are all getting an education in the life of the spirit (our non-physical self and its connection to God)it is just a matter of which one.  Don’t believe me then try this short quiz and see what it says about your Growing Up: How does your spiritual life... Continue Reading →

Previously published January 2020. If you have hit a dry period in your spiritual life and God seems distant and deaf, how do you find the strength to persevere in prayer? How do you hang on until help comes? What is your waiting strategy? According to Emilie Griffin, our growth and our sanctification is found... Continue Reading →

I promised you last week that I would share my Sabbath practice. This is not prescriptive so don’t try to copy it item for item. At the end, I do note a few areas that I would like to improve. May my description help you see the value of a Sabbath and help you see... Continue Reading →