DESERT SANCTUARY – YEAR-END FUNDRAISER As you may know, I have been recovering from a stroke since January and am now on disability. Your donation to The Desert Sanctuary will help us: * Provide FREE copies of our books to those who can’t afford it. * Occasionally mark down our books for affordability * Continue to produce FREE Leaving Forward conferences * Produce podcasts, blogs and videos * Provide FREE listening and focusing sessions to fellow desert dwellers *... Read more
Any one else ever feel DOWN? Me too! Anyone else ever tell yourself the wrong story about a situation? Uh, yeah, me too! Anyone else ever absorb the ignorance and thoughtlessness of others? Absolutely, me too! Anyone ever there for everyone else but forget to be there for You? Regretfully, me too! Anyone else learning we all make mistakes and we all get down and we all need to feel to heal and it’s okay to feel what feel? Thankfully,... Read more
Photo by Ron Lach I live in a county that is 75% Republican. There are various, small Protestant churches and no Catholic or Episcopal churches in the area. The main line denominations are represented, but woke theology and progressivism is limited. The sheriff’s vehicles have “In God We Trust” imprinted on them. So even though 60 to 80% of the population do not go to church regularly, it would be terribly unpopular to criticize organized religion publicly here. Because religious... Read more
Even though I am hard on pastors, I still see them as casualties of organized religion. I know some of them seem like monsters, but it may be that most of that is either trauma inflicted by the church or preexisting conditions they didn’t have time to address while doing ministry. I’m not making excuses for them because, sometimes, this has devastating consequences. It’s fairly predictable that when I raise a critique of the Western church or suggest its demise,... Read more
When I was a child, we lived within an hour of both sets of grandparents. Our routine was consistent throughout the years. On Christmas Eve, we drove to my mother’s family gathering. It was organized chaos at best with tons of food and a sea of people all gathered in a tiny farm house. Even the gifts were consistent– we drew names so we got one gift and gave away one, with the exception of the grandparents who gave and... Read more
Is God like a man, Or is man like a god? Are we made in the image, Or is He made in ours? Is God like a tree, With branches and leaves? Does he stand tall in the sun, And tether in the breeze? Is God in all things, Or are all things in God? Do we need Her to save us, Or to give us a nod? Is God like a man, Or is man like a god? Are... Read more
I’m gonna write a letter saying “all letters are inspired by God.” Some other people will also surely write letters of their own. We will keep them around for 300 years, then someone somewhere else, like Putin, will edit them into a book and claim these are the letters I was talking about in my letter. The letters will span hundreds of years and 40 different authors, but the recipients will just keep insisting this compilation is holy. It won’t... Read more
Since the release of our book, Out Into the Desert, I’ve been writing blogs and having discussions about organized religion in the 21st century. We’ve received a lot of feedback and, surprisingly, not everyone agrees. LOL Believe it or not, I’m okay with that–I just wanted to have a discussion. But this discussion is sure to be an electric one. I know who will have the most visceral reaction, but I think we should still have the conversation anyway. We... Read more
Occasionally someone accuses me of hating God or Religion. Neither one of these things is true, at least not in the strictest sense of the word hate. I realize that I have benefited from lessons I learned and experiences I had with God and organized religion. But, starting around 2016, I began to question my faith and the further I went, the more perspective I gained and the more troubling my view of God and the state of religion became. ... Read more
In my best evaluation, people have always been drawn towards things like religion to try to explain the things we could explain. The ceremonies and communities we built around our understanding and misunderstanding helped us shape some meaning into the world. I believe we can honor those traditions and, sometimes, even memorialize them while boldly and consciously moving into the future. Just because we were certain about things at one time doesn’t mean we possessed the wisdom for all time.... Read more
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