Grace
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what comes after?
It’s easy to believe in God, in heaven; even in hell, if you’re speaking of hell on earth. All of us have experienced both heaven and hell in this life. We’ve seen evidence of their reality here and now. But are they actual places and states of existence in the next life, the afterlife? I… Continue reading
afterlife, asking, authenticity, bible, change, Christianity, church, compassion, deconstruction, empathy, eternity, evangelicalism, experience, Faith, God, Grace, growth, heaven, honesty, hope, immortality, Jesus, knowledge, learning, listening, love, openness, personal, prayer, reflections, religion, scripture, Searching, seeking, spirit, spirituality, story, Theology, Trust, truth, understanding -
35
I don’t know where I thought I’d be at 35. I couldn’t have foreseen I’d be here—living in a ski town in Montana, housed with a family of five in a room above their garage, working a job that gives more freedom than I could have ever hoped for, not to mention a sufficient income.… Continue reading
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the tree
in my youth a tree was planted in the heart’s field. there it grew, watered and well-tended, bathed in light. years passed. my soul’s winter came. the lackluster tree loses its leaves. it still lives but with broken branches and missing limbs. even now it reaches skyward, though a little skewed, almost remembering something it… Continue reading
authenticity, beliefs, change, Christianity, creative writing, deconstruction, evangelicalism, experience, Faith, God, Grace, growth, honesty, hope, imagery, Jesus, learning, love, metaphor, past, personal, poetry, prayer, present, reflections, religion, spiritual journey, spirituality, story, Trust -
the bible
Is it our salvation, a love letter, a rulebook, a guide, an instruction manual, a weapon, or just stories made up long ago? Is it true, inspired, outdated, or myth? Is it directly from or dictated by God, or only some of it, or none of it. Does it point to God, or do only… Continue reading
asking, authenticity, bible, change, Christianity, church, compassion, deconstruction, empathy, evangelicalism, experience, Faith, God, Grace, growth, honesty, hope, Jesus, knowledge, learning, listening, love, openness, personal, prayer, reflections, religion, scripture, Searching, seeking, spirit, spirituality, story, Trust, truth, understanding -
prayer
Heads bowed. Eyes closed. Hands folded. Who taught us to pray this way? Would God have us pray in a spirit of formality. Or would he rather we lift our heads, open our eyes, and stretch out our hands to the mystery that reaches us. I think of the Michelangelo painting on the ceiling of… Continue reading
asking, authenticity, change, Christianity, church, compassion, deconstruction, empathy, evangelicalism, experience, Faith, God, Grace, growth, honesty, hope, Jesus, knowledge, learning, listening, love, openness, personal, prayer, reflections, religion, Searching, seeking, spirit, spirituality, story, Trust, truth, understanding -
my (short) story
Now, a little about me. I think back. What led me here? There’s childhood. A well behaved pastor’s kid though my father wasn’t a pastor but something more—a praying carpenter, a spiritual giant, a minister in his own unique way. I was like him, until l wasn’t. I wanted to be like him, until I… Continue reading
asking, authenticity, change, Christianity, church, compassion, empathy, evangelicalism, experience, Faith, God, Grace, growth, honesty, hope, Jesus, knowledge, learning, listening, love, openness, personal, reflections, religion, Searching, seeking, spirit, spirituality, story, Trust, truth, understanding -
anthropology as a guide to faith
In my spiritual background there was little room for creativity, understanding, or messaging outside of a straight and narrow understanding of faith. Christian worldview embodies a clear message, points us to God, is based in the Bible, is mostly black and white, and contains the “truth” of our beliefs, actions, and ways of being in… Continue reading
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experiencing the other
I’m going to begin touching on topics (or beliefs or doctrines) I have personally wrestled with, or am still wrestling through. This is not a theological examination; I am not a trained theologian or pastor or biblical scholar. Nor are solutions and answers presented. My aim is to stir questions, propel reflection, and honor experience.… Continue reading
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when God descends
Some summer weekend mornings I like to write a few pages with coffee in my room then move to the deck that faces the sunlight with a book of poetry hearing the birds in the background (this morning mostly sparrows and juncos dancing around in the dirt) then set down the book to watch the… Continue reading
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the lack
Though we search we’re never whole. There is always something missing. And somehow, someway, God is near in this. Christians may call it “the fall,” a product of original sin, some catastrophe unintended but fixable. If it’s this, it’s also much more than this. They say God will make it all okay, now or then,… Continue reading
a kingdom built of seeds 