The church is in the Lent season, a period of reflection, repentance, and preparation leading up to Resurrection Sunday. Though I did not grow up in church movements that celebrated Lent, nor was I shaped in a movement that had a regular practice of the liturgical church calendar, I have come to appreciate Lent. Even more, I have often thought of this as a season that invites us to do an inventory of our lives. Inventory is “an itemized list... Read more
Recently, this soundtrack has encouraged me to lead a quiet life. Music has consistently held a significant role throughout my life. I curate soundtracks and playlists tailored for road trips, vacations, and each distinct season of the calendar. Certain songs become fixtures in my life, echoing the sentiments of a particular moment in time, causing them to be played on repeat. Music, for me, at times transcends the ordinary and carries with it a divine connection to God, an instrument... Read more
Downward Mobility? For generations, upward mobility has defined the American Dream. Upward mobility defines the way we, particularly as Americans, have placed importance on ascending the ladders of success, economic prosperity, accomplishment, fame, and material possessions. Not only have Americans valued upward mobility, but there has been a capacity and capability in the systems for individuals to effectively climb these ladders. For years, the professional and organizational cultures around us were driven by the rewards of upward mobility. An aspect... Read more
For the past few months, I have been cohosting the weekly Discovering God Podcast with Rip Wahlberg. On this Discovering God Podcast, Rip and I address many different subjects – including the scriptures, theology, spirit-filled living, Christian living, matters of faith, and our spiritual journeys. For those of you interested, the audio version of our Discovering God Podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, and a lot of other podcast directories. You can also watch the... Read more
Sometimes when I come home and look at the many repairs that I need to do on my house, I become defeated by the overwhelming amount of work that I think needs to be done. There are other moments in which I wake up and think about the many projects that I need to get to, but truthfully I never seem to be able to complete all of them. Many weeks, I am transparently overtaken with anxiety about what I... Read more
Besides Leo Tolstoy, many books have looked to address and hold a mirror to humanity’s struggles with consumerism. Perhaps none have addressed it as creatively as How Much Land Does a Man Need by Leo Tolstoy. Though a lesser celebrated work of Tolstoy, this book creatively portrays the timeliness and insatiable consumerism we often have at play in our lives and our relationships with our possessions. This 2010 release of How Much Land Does a Man Need was translated by... Read more
This week, as I took time to contemplate the “art of minding your own business,” I came across a quote credited to Betty White that said, “Just mind your own business, take care of your own affairs, and don’t worry about people so much.” Though I never was infatuated with Betty as much as many others, I still appreciate her gentle reminder to mind our own affairs. White is not the only individual of notoriety to ever suggest such a... Read more
In my previous post, I shared 12 quotes that offer an understanding of what it means to lead a quiet life as a follower of Jesus. Those 12 quotes have helped me on my journey to embrace stillness and navigate the journey towards a quiet life. I like to think that those quotes put some practical understanding around the timeless wisdom that Paul gives us in 1 Thessalonians 4:11. In this blog post, I accentuate 12 scriptures that I think... Read more
Through this blog, I have started the journey towards a quiet life by studying Paul’s timeless wisdom to lead a quiet life which was written to the Thessalonian followers of Jesus in 1 Thessalonians 4:11-12. In recent posts, I have begun to wrestle with the way busyness and consumeristic living have derailed us from understanding the contentment and significance of a quiet life. I have also explored how Paul’s idea of quiet is a Sabbath-like living of stillness. Without a... Read more
This week, I came across an intriguing quote attributed to Craig D. Lounsbrough, that reads, “Greatness is born of ordinary men who decided to work extraordinarily hard” (GoodReads). For good or bad, Lounsbrough’s quote speaks to our innate human ability to pursue, actualize, and even produce success in our lives. Transparently, I do not know Craig or the context of his quote, but I do think this quote captures how a world of self-made men and women subconsciously believe that... Read more
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