It can be easy to think that Jesus loves the shinier coins more than the scratched-up ones. It’s easy to believe that divine blessings are proportional to our perfection; the more spiritually enlightened we are, the greater the bestowal of define affection. But as much as the world tries to tell us that this is how things work, Jesus shows a different reality.
Calling for the Gospel
Church meetings can feel like car accidents; Everything goes smoothly until it doesn’t. An accident of procedure or wording grinds everything to a halt. Discussions, schedules, and tasks pile upon each other until eventually all forward progression stops. And like just an accident on the freeway, the longer you sit in its effects the more … Continue reading Calling for the Gospel
When I Reach my Capacity for Closeness
Have you ever had enough of people? Have you ever wanted to distance yourself, not from anyone in specific, but people in general? It’s as if, suddenly, we reach our limit of social interaction. It happens to me about once per year.
Pray Simple
During university, I participated in a prayer walk for the city of Victoria. The intent was that each of us would to take our turn offering vocal prayer. I’m sure that everyone’s prayers were wonderful, faithful, and well-spoken, but I didn’t hear a single word of them. Instead, as everyone else was praying, I spent the time stressing about what I would say when it became my turn. As prayer passed from one person to the next, my mind raced through different phrases I could use, and scriptures I could refer to, to make my prayers both deep and eloquent. After all, no one wants to offer a messy prayer, right?
The story in our wounds
I have many scars scattered over my body. I have a scar on the inside of my right elbow, and one along my right side. Incisions were made in my groin, and I have 3 bald spots on my head. But one scar outdoes them all. The doozy is the 8-inch scar down the center of my chest. This is the one that is most evident, and most telling.
Hearing voices from above
Wouldn’t it be great if hearing Jesus was equivalent to listening to overhead announcements? Before we are too quick to say yes, I wonder how we would respond if Jesus’ spoke to us in that manner. Jesus, after all, doesn’t always say what we want to hear. His words of love and grace are paired with the challenge to repent, to serve, and to follow him to places we would choose not to go. These words, while necessary and life-producing, can be also upsetting and stretching. If Jesus’ voice was like that of airport announcement, would we not treat it the same way, an unwelcome intrusion into our pre-planned day?
Dear Derek,
I want to thank you for responding to my post about feeling God’s love. You were so honest in how you described your feelings of discouragement, and the deep wrestling that are undergoing. My heart grieved for you when I read that you have not felt God’s love for over a decade.
When You Fear Deconstruction
Deconstruction unmoors us, it leaves us drifting aimlessly through our questions and struggles. Yet these questions or struggles are rarely answered or addressed; rather, they are displaced or abandoned.. . .But what do you do if you don’t want to deconstruct your faith?
Asking Questions: A spiritual practice for Discouragement and beyond. (A guest post by Kandi Zeller)
In our culture of certainty, questions can seem threatening and unnatural. By contrast, Jesus spent much of his ministry asking questions and challenging assumptions. The sheer volume of these questioning instances in the Gospels should encourage us: if we are to be formed in the image of Christ (Romans 8:29), might we sometimes be formed by asking questions?
Reverend Kyle Norman 