Thomas Moore, in his book Care of the Soul, writes: Often care of the soul means not taking sides when there is a conflict at a deep level. It may seem necessary to stretch the heart wide enough to embrace contradiction and paradox. … [Read more...]
How To Be With Those Who Grieve
January 16, 2007 by 5 Comments
Be There: My philosophy and practice in almost all that I do is to not go into any situation "prepared". Usually it's a waste of time. If I'm not prepared just as I am, then it's too late anyway. So, what I do is I just plop myself into the middle of a situation and let things unfold naturally. The hardest part, in my experience, is just getting yourself in the door. The rest takes care of itself. Shut Up: Over and over again I've received feedback from people after the grieving is over that … [Read more...]
The Faith is Hijacked
January 16, 2007 by Leave a Comment
Karen Armstrong, in her book, Islam: A Short History, states that in the early days, (Women) did not seem to have experienced Islam as an oppressive religion, though later, as happened in Christianity, men would hijack the faith and bring it into line with the prevailing patriarchy. … [Read more...]
The Smarter I Am The Stupider I Get!
January 15, 2007 by 2 Comments
Martin Luther said, Bewilderment is the true comprehension. … [Read more...]
A Bomb Explodes in Church!
January 14, 2007 by 13 Comments
As some of you may have gathered, I encourage people to ask questions or make comments right in the middle of my messages. I love the freedom, but let me tell you, it's scary! Like today, for example! When there is a death in the congregation and we as a church need to process some grief, we open up the mic. So, following our friend's suicide this week, we needed to work it through as a community. Today, it began with Trent leading worship and songs for an hour with communion mixed in there. … [Read more...]
Spiritual Robots Take Over the Church!
January 14, 2007 by 1 Comment
Thomas Merton, in his spiritual classic, Spiritual Direction and Meditation, writes: The spiritual man is one who, 'whether he eats or drinks or whatever else he does, does all for the glory of God'Â (1 Corinthians 10:31). Again, this does not mean that he merely registers in his mind an abstract intention to glorify God. It means that in all his actions he is free from the superficial automatism of conventional routine. It means that in all that he does he acts freely, simply, spontaneously, f … [Read more...]
Good Luck and Good Night
January 14, 2007 by 5 Comments
Here's a pic of one of my son's, Jesse, who's turning 18. He's finally and finely dressed in one of the first suits I ever owned. I took this today because he just looked so funny in his fine Russian hat, expensive Italian shoes, and the suit. He's looking sad because he's just being a goof. He's usually hilarious. But he's not usually dressed up like this. I love him and I like him too which can be rare for teenagers. I'm up at 2:37 a.m. because he just called again and needs a ride home, so I … [Read more...]
It’s Not So Much That You Want To Die
January 13, 2007 by 1 Comment
Mary Bell from Orlando, Florida, wrote this poetically written letter to me following the post about my friend taking his own life this past Monday. I received her permission to post it here because I thought it was an honest and accurate picture into her own struggle. Even though each one is unique, this is her story: I'm so sorry. I commented, but wanted to say more: I have had bouts of suicidal moments. I understand the reasonings of the wanting to leave. it's not so much that you want to … [Read more...]
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