January 1st. Another year passed, a new one awaits. The older I get the faster it seems time goes (and the freakier it feels). Last year I wrote about being less mean, more gentle with myself, and I would say that all in all things moved in a little better direction. Earlier in 2015, I made […]
Read MoreGod in the thick of us.
Happy Christmas Eve. I am juggling kids and Refuge this week with no time to write but always come back to the gift of Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us. It’s one of the deepest spiritual truths that continues to sustain me and was the one thing that I could always rely on during my crazy […]
Read Moreformation friday: screwing up as spiritual formation
I make a lot of mistakes. I say stupid things I regret. I dig holes when I should lay down my shovel. I hurt people unintentionally. I hit “send” on emails when I wish I hadn’t. I write things on my blog that sometimes make me cringe later. The past few months I had some […]
Read Morehuman connection.
Some of you may have already seen this excellent video that points to a recent study that confirms what so many have known intuitively–the root of all addictions is disconnection. It’s really worth the time to watch it and reminds me of what one of my favorite theologian-practictioners in the whole-wide-world, Jean Vanier, has been […]
Read Morepower's resistance to the uncomfortable.
This time of year I always think of how much I love the Christmas story. Not the neat and tidy shiny story that often gets told and is depicted on Christmas cards and all kinds of slogans, but the real story that is underneath it. The story of God coming into the world in such a […]
Read More"um, well, it depends on what you mean by 'Christian'"
In the earlier days of my faith, knowing who was and wasn’t a “Christian” was a big deal to me. There was something attached to it that was comforting, familiar, certain. When I look back on those years, “Is he/she a Christian?” would come up in countless ways–related to teachers, doctors, family members, auto mechanics, […]
Read Morewhen Christmas is hard…
Blogging has been on the back-burner for me in this past season, and I miss you guys! I just haven’t been in the right head space to write, and honestly, waking up to hearing the realities of another mass shooting, this one at a disability center, just makes me so sick and all words fall […]
Read Morelittle (and big and every size in between) pockets of peace
Oh, what a horrid month it’s been. Beirut, Syria, Iraq, and Paris (and many, many others not highlighted in the news). So much violence, destruction, fear, and confusion. What can we do? How do we carry on with our real lives and not ignore the reality of such deep pain in our fellow humans? We […]
Read Moreimportant words from parents of LGBQT kids: what hurts, what helps
I had the privilege of spending a few days with an online support group for moms of LGBQT kids of all ages. What a gift! These are amazing women of hope and courage. As we all know, many strains of Christianity have not been kind to these kids and parents. The judgment, the ostracizing, the […]
Read Moreplease dear God, help us find a better way to talk about abortion solutions
I always get nervous when I post about this topic because it brings out the trolls. At the same time, I can barely stand how horrid the conversations about abortion seem to go online. I believe in every part of me that there’s a better way to talk about this and find some better solutions together. […]
Read More