There are times when I simply don't understand people: why they do what they do, why they care about what they do, why they're concerned about something that seems insignificant to me. I suspect most of us have that problem from time to time, and it can challenge our ability to show compassion. [Click title to read more.]
Category: faith and growth
Walking Through Fear, Discomfort, and Pain
There's a pernicious myth that a worrying Christian, a scared Christian, or a fearful Christian, is somehow inauthentic or faithless. [Click title to read more.]
Tent Pegs and Opportunity
When we determine to ourselves that we are going to move forward in God's name or when we perceive that God has asked something of us, we must commit boldly and completely to whatever it is that we intend to do. [Click title to read more.]
A Believer’s Longing
I suspect that all humans experience that longing for pure communion with God and the world that was once meant to be, that our desperate desire to return to it has been coded into our DNA. [Click title to read more.]
What Does Christian Disagreement Look Like?
I'm the sort of person who apologizes even without having done anything wrong, just to smooth over an argument; I hesitate before taking a stance that might cause conflict. And yet the more I study, the more I realize that Christian disagreement both with believers and nonbelievers can be a beautiful, productive thing: we just have to learn the skill and then hone it over time. [Click title to read more.]
Why The Church Must Make An Effort To Value Solitude With God
It's true that the Christian life is not always meant to be a solo affair. Teachers, pastors, fellow believers, even small groups: all of those things are a part of our faith community, and they can help us and grow us. But in elevating these, I fear that we dismiss what I perceive to be the fundamental necessity of individual solitude with God. [Click title to read more.]
Cliff Notes: The Lost Art of Bible Study In The Church (Part 3)
In the first post in this series I spent some time discussing the dangers of Bible-lite, that phenomenon when Christians substitute secondhand study of God's word for actual Bible study. In the second, I talked about some of the consequences of Bible-lite. Today, however, I'll be putting on my professor hat to offer some solutions to the problem. If you struggle with studying the Bible (or even with wanting to study the Bible!), there is both help and hope. [Click title to read more].
Cliff Notes: The Lost Art of Bible Study In the Church (Part 2)
Today we're going to talk about the consequences of Bible-lite: what it means for your faith when you choose to subsist on supplements. [Click title to read more.]
Why Forgiveness Is More Complex Than We Imagine
Forgiveness is an act which encompasses much more than saying "that's okay", and we understand that instinctively when we ask for it: we want a chance to prove ourselves, to show we are more than our misbehavior, to not have an act or a series of acts define our identities or others' perceptions of us. [Click title to read more.]
Cliff Notes: The Lost Art of Bible Study In The Church (Part I)
Devotionals and commentaries and Christian books, while valuable to learning and spiritual growth, aren't the Bible itself. And I am convinced that one of the biggest struggles modern Christians will face is being unable, or unwilling, to make that distinction. [Click title to read more.]
Samaritan's Song 