There’s an often-repeated story about the construction of the Salisbury Cathedral. The story goes like this: once a man was visiting southern England 800 years ago, just as the construction efforts for the cathedral were beginning to get underway. The man approached a group of workers laying brick and asked a man, who seemed very sullen, what he was doing. The worker looked at the traveler like he was an idiot. “Can’t you see, I’m laying brick?” the man said.... Read more
Every morning at The Hope Clinic, we gather in prayer. It is a time to set our hearts back on God and to remember the big story of what God is doing in the world. This is an important time of the day for me. During our morning prayer we often read a Psalm together and pray for programs or events happening that day or week at Hope. We lift up specific intentions that have been raised by volunteers, clients... Read more
Hope begins when we keep three things open in our lives: our eyes, our hearts, and our time. Here are a few tips on how to get started. Open your heart People in despair are rarely hungry for advice, but they are almost always hungry for love, compassion, and care. The first step to becoming an agent of hope is starting from a place of real concern. Giving someone hope begins with having hope for them. Open your eyes The... Read more
I recently read an article in the Washington Post warning that there is a rising tide of despair in the United States. Depression rates are rising, as are suicide rates. Loneliness has gotten to such a serious point that some are calling it a major health epidemic. We live in a world that is full of despair, but I don’t think it needs to stay that way. A number of years ago I had the privilege of working as a... Read more
A few years ago a couple of friends and I decided to start a coffee shop. We were able to raise enough funds to buy an old auto shop that was for sale but we didn’t have enough money to hire people to renovate it. That meant it fell to us to do the work of transforming the old auto shop into a new coffee shop. It was hard work, and we didn’t really know what we were doing. I’ll... Read more
I have four young boys. One of their favorite things to do is read books. The older ones love reading books themselves and the younger ones love having books read to them. Recently I rediscovered a book that I used to read when I was their age. It’s called Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day Book. Have you read it? It tells the story of a young boy who has a bad day; everything that can go... Read more
When Advent first emerged, it was rooted in the need for hope. Advent was started by Christians who believed that Jesus was alive and that God was at work in the world. They believed that what God was doing in their daily lives was part of a much bigger story, a story of hope. They believed that the story was headed towards the whole world being reconciled and restored to the life that God had intended. But sometimes they would... Read more
Advent can sometimes get overwhelmed by the business of the Christmas season. This is really too bad since advent is such a beutiful and essential season in the Church Calendar. I don’t want you to waste this season on the distractions that can so readily monopolize your attention. In order to help I’ll be doing a series of reflections for each day in advent. I really wanted to make sure that everyone had an easy way to use these reflections... Read more
Here’s a video I made a couple years back in honor of the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary today! Enjoy! Read more
We pray today For an open heart A heart that welcomes in Those who feel lost Those who feel abandoned Those without hope We ask you to help us Make room in our hearts To clear out spaces cluttered By fear By anxiety By dispair Let your grace clean up forgotten corners Let your mercy open the locked doors Let your power lift out the hoarded refuse Renovate Redecorate Restore Let hospitality replace hostility Let acceptance replace animosity Let sanguinity replace... Read more
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