In these last few days before Christmas, I’ve been reflecting on this crazy year. On the political bizarreness we are all in the midst of, the stripping of benefits and protections for children while those on the top line their pockets, the reality of our systems being tilted toward undistributed power, the ongoing division within […]
Read Moreits all one big fat paradox.
We’re smack in the middle of Advent and I haven’t written anything since Thanksgiving week. That’s because the day after Thanksgiving we found out that my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Since then, we were able to move him to Colorado to spend this last season of life with us in our home surrounded […]
Read Morethe unimportant people.
It’s been an extra busy few weeks around here with Refuge life and kids and the juggles of this season, and I haven’t had space to write much. I know this season can be tricky for many, and 2016 seemed to have extra measure of ugliness for a lot of people I know. For me, […]
Read Morehope, my favorite word.
If you know me in real life, you know my favorite word is Hope. Refuge friends tease me about it all of the time, and for good reason. I love the word and have written it on my share of rocks over the years. I know hope is dangerous. It’s vulnerable. It’s scary. But it […]
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 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 Moreoutsiders.
One of the things that has been the hardest about shifting faith is moving from being an “insider” to an “outsider.” I have always been one of those people who looks like an insider, like someone who fits in. The truth is that underneath a lot of that has been a prevailing feeling that somehow, […]
Read Morewhen christmas is hard.
Oh, this time of year! Some people love it, some people hate it. There are so many things tied to the time from Thanksgiving to not just Christmas but also the start of a new year. It brings to light the reality of losses, financial pressures, broken relationships, shame, family brokenness or non-existedness, faith shifts, […]
Read Morewhen christmas is hard: honoring paradox
well, so much choosing for “help, thanks, wow” for when christmas is hard. sometimes things just shift and new ideas come. that’s what i love about blogging; it is current. this week, i got a completely new thought on how i wanted to wrap this series, mainly because it’s what seems to always help me […]
Read Morewhen christmas is hard: "look toward the light"
“finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” – phiippians 4:8 i don’t know about you, but i’m in a fog. friday’s tragedy coupled with so much going on here in real life plus […]
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