Posts: Christianity
A Divine-Filled Practice
Inviting God into the details
May 22, 2023
The fifth guy in one week showed up today to give us a quote. Seems all we’ve been doing lately is getting quotes for different services we need done around the house. Now it’s the front yard gate that needs repairing as well as our driveway, which needs a new seal coat. “Happy homeowning,” one salesman sarcastically said to me on the phone the other day.
What Comes to the Surface
God’s refining work in our lives
Apr 10, 2023
I left the laser and skin spa holding an ice pack against my left cheekbone to reduce the burning. It was about to thunderstorm, so I rushed to my car. The lead aesthetician told me it might sting more than last time since she cranked up the heat on my IPL service. I wasn’t seeing the results I wanted after two treatments, so she suggested we try a more intense level.
Shepherding Us in His Direction
Learning the art of fellowship with God
Mar 04, 2023
It's 11:15 pm on Sunday night and I'm searching for videos related to “when God feels distant” on YouTube. I watch a few that look helpful, with titles including “Why Has God Been So Silent When I've Reached Out To Him?” and “How to Get Back on Track Spiritually When You Feel Far from God.”
The Symbolism of the Resurrection
Finding renewal in lifeless places
May 01, 2019
Easter. The word conjures up themes of renewal and rebirth for me. A starting over. Not like starting a new year, but starting a new way of life, a re-envisioning of how one wants to show up in the world. This day gives me hope that what once was dead can come back to life. All the lifeless places within me get drenched with promise.
On Earth As It Is in Heaven
Attempting to create God’s vision in our everyday lives
Apr 17, 2019
“As it is in heaven.” This is the new sermon series that started at the church I attend in downtown Chicago, based on the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6:10. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. The larger question weaved into the sermons is — how can we bring the kingdom of heaven down to earth, into our day-to-day lives?
Surrendering the Quest for Life Purpose
Dec 13, 2016
For most of my life, I was chasing my life purpose, with a capital P, hoping I would find it somewhere, anywhere. When it didn’t make an appearance in my hometown, I moved. When it didn’t show up in my undergraduate college, I went back for my graduate degree. When that led to one dead-end job after another, I thought surely it will surface in the self-help books I was reading along the way.
How Are You?
Nov 14, 2016
No really, how are you? How are you right now, in this precious moment? Not on the surface, not in the ‘asking-the-cashier-at-checkout’ sort of way. But deep down, underneath the layers we pile on to keep ourselves safe and protected from the grievances of the world. How is the deepest part of you feeling?