Yesterday we talked about how the biblical understanding of joy is rooted in the way that we act in the world. Joy is deeply connected to hope. You might even say that joy is what happens when we put our full strength into living a lifestyle of hope. Living joyfully is not always easy. I find that I have to practice joy. I have to work at it. It has to be something I build into my life with intention.... Read more

Week three of Advent is all about Joy. Joy is a word that is sometimes misunderstood. Too often it is equated with happiness. People wrongfully believe that joy is an emotion, out of their control. This leads to the belief that some people get to have joy and others do not. It has created the idea that joy is reserved only for those who have lived without struggles and joy becomes something foreign to a life of hardship and a... Read more

We are at the end of Week Two, the week of Faith. We have talked about how faith is more than a belief, but also an action. We have talked about telling stories of faith and have come up with ideas for how to help people have faith in themselves and what God hopes for them. All of this is wonderful, but we also must remember the foundation of faith in this Advent season; Jesus Christ. The author of Hebrews reminds... Read more

Yesterday we talked about helping people to see the goodness, sacredness, and potential that they have. Sometimes this can be done with simple encouraging words. This is a free exercise, requiring only time and attention. Today I want to challenge you to take the next step. I want you to plan a faith intervention. I don’t mean you need to intervene in someone’s life and tell them they need to have more faith. What I want you to do is... Read more

Do you have a catchphrase? For Bugs Bunny, it was “What’s up doc?” Walter Cronkite had, “that’s  the way  it is.” Having a catchphrase is one way to connect a phrase or sentiment with a person. It distills something about who they are into a memorable line. I have tried to make “You can do it, I believe in you” my catchphrase. I repeat it often and mean it. I have found that many people struggle to believe in themselves.... Read more

I have a friend who has made it a mission to practice random acts of kindness. It’s like a special game to him and it’s a joy to watch. Often when I see him he’ll tell me about how much fun he just had buying coffee for everyone in line behind him or how the gas station attendant reacted when he showed up with a bucket, sponges and a toilet brush and started to deep clean the public restroom. My... Read more

I grew up in a Christian family. As a child, I loved this time of year, because every night during Advent my parents would tell me stories. They would tell me the stories from the Bible that spoke of God’s commitment to rescue the world. They told me about people like Abraham who believed God and left all he knew to pursue a promise. They told me about Moses who trusted in God’s word enough to lead a people to... Read more

I hate watching the news. It’s not that I don’t like to know what is happening in the world, it is the way the news is told through messages of fear. Every day I hear about new atrocities and terrors that threaten the destruction of my life, my family, my community, or my planet. The feelings of helplessness I get make me want to tune it all out. I feel like if I just ignore the fears and problems of... Read more

Is faith a belief or an action? There’s a parable that Gino Wickman tells in his book Traction: there was once a man who slipped while walking along the edge of a cliff. Just before plummeting into the valley below, he managed to grab hold of a vine. As his feet dangled over the edge, he found that he was unable to climb back up. Desperate, he cried out, “Is there anyone up there?” A voice from the heavens responded... Read more

There is an anti-hunger organization called Bread for the World that I used to work for. They work in Washington D.C. with lawmakers to create legislation that ensures that people don’t go hungry. Bread for the World helps people to share their stories of food insecurity and hunger issues with congressional representatives and works with churches all over the United States to host letter-writing events. At these events, church members are encouraged to compose notes which are sent to legislators.... Read more