Not All Christians Smile

It's easy for us to reflect our own assumptions, ideas, and personalities onto Christianity as a whole and onto other believers, too. It's simple, in other words, for us to assume that other believers do or should act just like us because they love the same God we do and are blessed in the same way as we are. [Click title to read more.]

Redefining Our Understanding of Strength

Peacefulness, the refusal to depend on the self or on physical strength, the healing of those who would harm us, the deliberate avoidance of indulging one's "right" to retribution: if we interpret those things as weakness, we miss the point of the Gospel. [Click title to read more.]

Happy Thanksgiving

I find that the Thanksgiving heart, which is followed by the Christmas spirit, is all too quickly mowed down by January apathy, February disillusionment, and March boredom. Let's change that. [Click to read more.]

How Forgiveness Makes Space for Honesty

Because I'm a college professor, I assign homework. Students are not into this. A few years ago, one of my students was so not into this that she forgot to write down the page numbers of the reading assignment. Logging on to the forum for our class online, she promptly wrote an email that she … Continue reading How Forgiveness Makes Space for Honesty

The Onus Is On Us: Christian Responsibility

As believers, we can't predicate our responses on the behavior of others. We can't wait for those around us to make the first move of kindness or love. [Click title to read more.]

How To Receive Criticism Gracefully

Accepting criticism gracefully was a skill I had to learn over time as a part of my Christian walk. So I thought I'd write about five easy ways to do that here for those of us who find that any sort of criticism, merited or not, stings more than it ought. [Click title to read more.]

The “I’m Doing It Right” Myth

The fact that you're happy, healthy, and doing well does not necessarily indicate that your relationship with God is going well.

Faith Marked By Culture

My approach to God's word and to His grace has been influenced by the world around me - and the same is true for those who live in other countries and cultures. [Click title to read more].