3.27.23   Slavery to the World   We think of slavery as the chattel slavery experienced by the African slaves in our history. But, really, we are all enslaved to different degrees to what we absorbed from our culture as we were growing up, to what we absorbed of the teachings of our families, and to […]

3.20.23   We are so easily distracted by our own agendas, our judgments and biases, our chattering minds, that we are seldom fully present to anyone we are with or anything that is happening. So often, because of our inattention, we are only hearing some of what is being said by the person we are […]

3.13.23   The narrative is the story we’ve grown up with, the stories in our culture, the stories in our families, and our own take on what has happened to us. The narrative is what we look for to be affirmed in the world as we want our lives to be. We are wholly dependent […]

3.6.23 Our definition of prayer these days is mostly confined to spoken/memorized prayers and petitions to God for ourselves and others. That’s a small container for what prayer can be: it is meant to be an ongoing dialogue with God about where we are and what we’re asking for in our lives and then listening […]

2.27.23            The 5 Stages of the Spiritual Journey   I believe that there are five stages that we need to accomplish in order to love God with all of ourselves, and our neighbors as ourselves, as we follow Jesus Christ. We have in us a lot to heal and to transform, so that we can […]

2.20.23   In Genesis 1:26-7, at the end of the Creation Story, God said, “Let us make mankind in our image in our likeness….So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” He created us all in His image, that is, every […]

2.13.23   We have a choice about what consumes us in our lives. The first half of our lives is often spent launching ourselves into adulthood, building a career, getting married/having children, establishing ourselves, getting as far as we can materially and professionally. We live out the cultural paradigms and, hopefully, thrive. I know that […]

2.6.23   It is easy for us to feel gratitude for the blessings in our lives, but it is even more important for us to feel gratitude for every challenge that has shaped us, for every painful circumstance that we have been through. As we follow Jesus, as He heals us of all these challenges, […]

1.30.23   As followers of Jesus Christ, we walk along the path He has chosen for us, we see issues coming to our attention for us let go of. These issues are the things in us that keep us from seeing and agreeing to what God wants for us. They are the things that have […]

1.23.23   To follow Jesus Christ means that we become good at sitting/being in the presence of God,  listening for His wisdom, and doing what He suggests to us. As we are able to sit in His presence, there is a definite spillover effect into the rest of our lives: we learn how to be […]