A few days ago, I remembered that about 2,000 years ago the people who said they followed God were divided into multiple religious and political factions. (Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots, Essenes; Jews, Samaritans, Romans--and I know I'm leaving lots of people out.) Whatever each group was right about or wrong about, it was serious, painful business. Then God came and dwelt among them and lovingly blew all of their ideas to bits... The truest things I know about Trump or Biden or Pence or Harris (listed first chronologically, then by president-vice president) are the truest things I know about the people I work with, my students, the guy sitting in the opposite pew, the irritating person standing in the middle of the aisle at Wal-Mart sharing their personal business over the phone so loud you can hear them three aisles over, my family, my friends, my neighbors, myself...
Found a date–with Rich Mullins (No, I didn’t break up with Jack or Tollers. This is called the communion of the saints.)
Image taken from firstthings.com Last night I finished Andrew Peterson's Adorning the Dark (which I encourage you to read), and he's as love-struck with Rich Mullins as I've been with C.S. Lewis. I'm pretty he sure mentions the guy at least once in every chapter, just like I've probably mentioned Lewis in most of my…
July Meditations for December
I mentioned earlier in the year that sometimes I go through old journal entries and find prayers and words that I'm not not sure how I had the strength to say then and certainly don't as I read them--but I know they are true and the Lord tells us to remember past redemptions. Here is…
On Love for Country, Love for Neighbor
We need an appropriate ordering to our souls as well as our loves.
Gossip, Backbiting, and Whispering
Am I being an empathetic listener, or am I enabling gossip? Am I only seeking counsel? Or am I trying to eavesdrop or putting others in the position to gossip? Am I listening to someone with the gift of discernment? Or is it self-righteous slander? Character assassination? Or creating division? Is it just venting? Just…
An Apology to Men
Over the past year, I’ve been reminded of some heart-breaking ways that our culture, even pockets in Christian culture, deem fit to treat men. I was reminded of my own contributions years ago when I went through my own man-hating stage. Yes, it may have come from some wounds, but it was far from the…
Badges of Honor, Hiding Our Shame
I am a perfectionist. I'm an overachiever. I can be a workaholic. Like you, I've heard many people make these statements, and I've made them myself. (I'm trying to quit.) But over the past few years I've noticed something about how we make these statements. Tone and body language can communicate quite a bit, as…
A Bit on Journals, Words, and A February Prayer for May
I remember my first journal, and I still have it. It was thin and covered with multicolored balloons.
God with Us: Thoughts on the Incarnation Part #1
“Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, your neighbor is possibly the holiest object presented to your senses.”[1] While I’ve been blessed during this quarantine time to live in community with my family, the absence of other forms of community has turned my thoughts towards the Incarnation. I noticed this the first week of online…
Learning in Wartime: A Podcast
Hey friends, I wanted to connect you with a new and fantastic podcast named after a lecture given by C.S. Lewis to his students at Oxford during WWII called "Learning in Wartime." In this podcast, Providence Academy Secondary Principal Dane Bundy, Dean of Students Bryce Ballard, and I explore truth, goodness, and beauty through both…
