Confession time: for all that i am willing to proclaim what is wrong with mega-church culture, I have never actually spent much time in one. I went to a really big church, once. I was in college, and went with some friends to what was quickly becoming one of the largest churches in the state. This was way before my sense of calling to ministry, and before i had any kind of awareness of the culture wars that were emerging within and between... Read more
It’s been 2 months. That’s 8 weeks of travel with young children; of shoe melting, hair frizzing heat and humidity; of trying to cram in a visit with every person i’ve ever known; of meals on the road; of playing tetris with blocks of time; of waking up in the morning to briefly–briefly–wonder where i was that day; of suitcase living, and all the wardrobe crises that implies… Yes, sabbatical is supposed to be a time of rest. But when... Read more
What is it that keeps us moving? What are we looking for? I’ve wondered about this all my life. When we’ve got literally everything we could ever want or need at our fingertips, why do so many of us keep wandering the varied landscape, as if it can tell us some deep and abiding truth of the soul? Maybe because it can… I don’t know if i could tell you what that truth is, but i glimpse it every time... Read more
I started getting in trouble for my ‘to be’ verbs in junior AP English. It was my favorite class of my whole school experience, but it was also the point at which i realized i was not the greatest writer of all time. (WHAT???) My teacher, the legendary Mrs. McNulty, would take a red ink pen and circle every be, is and was, leaving the whole thing in a marked-up red mess for my further revision. I didn’t really get... Read more
Following a pretty rotten day, the universe will sometimes throw you a nearly perfect one. Or maybe it’s just that, for me, two consecutive rotten days are unacceptable. In any case, yesterday= pretty dang crummy. Today, however, rolled something like this: Day started, per usual, with a small girl crawling into bed with me and firmly wedging herself in my back to snooze for a few more minutes. Then it was up and around for breakfast with the fam at... Read more
Chairs or pews? Ah, the age-old question that has turned many a pastor’s hair gray before his/her time, and split many a faithful congregation down its carpeted center-aisle. That is, if they hadn’t already split over the carpet color… The first time i walked into a sanctuary that had chairs, i thought it felt weird and wrong and unchurch-like. I was walking in as the new student minister, and luckily, nobody asked me what i thought about the seating arrangement.... Read more
I used to love those Richard Scarry books when i was a kid. You know the ones: with lots of colorful, happy-looking animals, dressed like people, going about everyday sorts of activities. Some little vignettes thrown in here and there, but mostly, just some commentary on what the animals are doing, what kinds of stuff they have, and questions about what we might do in our day, and what kinds of stuff we might have, too… It sounds super dull, but... Read more
It occurs to me that I should never be famous. Not that i was ever in much danger of that…i’m just thinking that i should avoid it at all costs now, because I am still experiencing ‘feedback fatigue’ from the discussion about amendment 1 the other day. I usually get a handful of readers, mostly church folks and my mom (who told me that i should sometimes count her twice, because she comes back to read it again). To give... Read more
Parenthood comes with that same sense of urgency. They grow so quickly, we don’t have much time. Let me get just this one snack made, this one conflict dissolved, this one dance recital/baseball season/science project under wraps…then i will rest. Then I can enjoy the ride. But sometimes…well, sometimes, the urgent replaces the important. And we can spend a great deal of our lives focused on that ‘just one more’ thing, and far too little of it in the moment. Read more
I went to bed angry, and woke up with a deep and painful sigh of the soul. Every other blogger in the progressive and free-thinking world is writing and ranting about North Carolina today. But really, what can you say? What can you say when a country that is based on freedom, passes a law that suppresses the very right to be one’s self? What can you say when people who claim faith in a loving, merciful God, pass a... Read more
Irreverin
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