Saying goodbye is never easy. And some goodbyes are harder than others. But no matter how painful, saying goodbye is important. A lack of a goodbye can feel like unfinished business while the opportunity to say goodbye can be extremely healing
Christian faith
Searching Rubble for Gold: A guest-post by Sue Fulmore
The legalism, judgementalism, patriarchal systems, and poor Scriptural interpretations all need to be tossed out. As we do so, we also need to guard against tossing out the proverbial baby with them. I would never presume to tell anyone how to go about this process of deconstruction, but I also don’t want us to forget all that is good and worthy of holding onto.
Believing You’re Beloved – A Guest Post by Molly LaCroix.
Molly LaCroix writes: The (often young) wounded parts of you are the ones who believe things like, “I’m unlovable,” or “I’m not good enough.” They think it’s their fault bad things happened, that they are defective. Until their wounds heal, you will struggle with fully accepting God’s gracious, unconditional love.
Red Doors & Black Fences
Each time my wife and I stepped out of the house, I’d ask to how far she believed she could walk. We developed our own lingo. One day her goal would be “The red door”; the next day, “the black fence.” These mini-milestones marked her progression; they served as guides, leading her on.
Shedding My Labels
Labels are a fickle thing. They do not describe what, or whom, they are intended to describe. Instead, they speak only of preconceptions, assumptions, and judgements. Is anyone truly the label they are associated with? If I’m not progressive enough for the progressives, or evangelical enough for the evangelicals, what does that make me?
Lessons in Prayer 2: The invitation to be dissatisfied
Have you ever felt dissatisfied with your prayers? Have you felt that despite your best efforts you have never plumbed the depths of everything that prayer can offer you? Have you looked longingly to the saints before you, wishing to uncover a fraction of the prayerful intimacy they seemed to enjoy? I know I have. … Continue reading Lessons in Prayer 2: The invitation to be dissatisfied
Lessons in Prayer 1: A longing for communion
Prayer is communion with God. It is an enacted relationship, a reaching out to Jesus. “Prayer is the natural outgushing of a soul in communion with Jesus”, says Charles Spurgeon.[i] One cannot pray and remain cut off from the presence of God. The intimate presence of God, understood and experienced in our lives, is the … Continue reading Lessons in Prayer 1: A longing for communion
The day I fell out of love with contemporary praise music (again)
I remember distinctly the day I fell out of love with contemporary worship music. It was during my first year of university. While always a Christian, my faith grew in passion and energy through the Vineyard explosion of the 90’s. This deepening of my faith coupled with my learning to play the guitar. Almost instantaneously … Continue reading The day I fell out of love with contemporary praise music (again)
Are Disciplines Necessary?
This post is based on a presentation made at the ACW Regional Retreat in September 2020. Are Spiritual Disciplines really that important? Why are Spiritual Disciplines important? Is not believing in Jesus enough? Are disciplines just a form of works righteousness, some mistaken attempt to earn our salvation? Do we really need to worry about … Continue reading Are Disciplines Necessary?
The Way of Discernment
This post first appeared in "Ministry Matters" under the title: "Discernment: it's not just pointing at random verses" on Medium.com Whenever we aspire to live the Christian life with any intentionality, an inevitable question arises. How do I know what God wants me to do? How do I know I am making the right decisions? … Continue reading The Way of Discernment
Reverend Kyle Norman 