I wrote this as a tweet, google+ and facebook update yesterday: What we want to think is true is the root of our belief. Our belief creates whole worlds. These worlds confirm our belief. Endless cycle. I used to believe, as a child, that nothing could hurt my dad. Because, as a child, I needed that to be true. The fact that, as a child, I never saw my dad hurt confirmed my belief. In fact, the fact that, as... Read more
Some leaders can often be accused of double-speak. On the one hand they talk so much about authenticity and intimacy in relationships, honesty and truth-telling, being raw and real. But then on the other hand they themselves are completely inaccessible and instill a unsettling sense of insecurity and suspicion among the members. You can’t have both. Either you encourage authenticity with all of its chaos, or you run a uncompromisingly tight ship of subjects. In the first case people come... Read more
These poor sheep aren’t lost. They’re hiding. And they’re in for a beating. Sometimes you think people are lost when in fact they’ve left you intentionally. The whole point of the story of the lost sheep is that the shepherd was overjoyed when he found it. And it is presumed that because he was a good shepherd the sheep was overjoyed too. Don’t scold or punish people for leaving you. It’s that attitude that probably encouraged them to “get lost”... Read more
How well did you obey men? How perfectly did you respect authority? How carefully did you please others? How obsessively did you follow scripture? How diligently did you separate yourself from sinners? How frequently did you tithe? How successfully did you not rock the boat? How compulsively did you try to do everything just right? How afraid of me were you? How many were following you by the end of your ministry? Read more
The Discovery Channel says that if you get stuck in quicksand, the worst thing you can do is struggle. They say that if you fall into quicksand, “resist the natural instinct to kick your way out.” Instead, they suggest to “you need to stay calm and lean back“. Then, “as you begin floating, slowly start moving your feet“. That’s how you survive quicksand. Pretty good advice for surviving questions. I mean serious death-threatening questions. There are many who don’t deal... Read more
There is resurrection after death. I’ve experienced it many times in my own life. The curious thing about resurrection is that you’re never quite sure when it happened or how. For instance, even though I left the professional ministry over a year ago and have gone through a very difficult time since (you can read back over the last year on this blog and get a taste of it), at some point during that difficult time I’ve come back to... Read more
Someone will say, “That’s so Old Testament! We’ve moved on from there!” Why aren’t we willing to say the same about other issues that are in the New Testament? Own the original drawing. Buy a print of this cartoon. Read more
Yes you feel alone. Standing solitary like a spruce. But I bet if we followed your roots they would join with those of others. Trees afar off you’ve never seen. You would recognize yourself in them. And weep for them as you’ve wept for yourself. You will marvel at their beauty. And perhaps see it in your own boughs. Stand majestic against the moon. Let your shadow fall upon your ground. Shelter the birds of the air. But most of... Read more
Forgiveness just might be withheld in this case. This might be an unanswered prayer. Maybe he should ask forgiveness for always believing and doing what he is told. Own the original drawing of the cartoon. Buy a print of this cartoon. Read more
Here are six signs of a toxic relationship: Do you feel content or unfulfilled with the other? Do you feel better or worse about yourself after you spend time with the other? Is there an equal give and take or do you feel you are always giving and the other is always taking? Do you feel safe or insecure with the other? Is the relationship characterized by peace or drama? Do you feel accepted or that you have to change... Read more
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