After Three Beers
I want to be the person that I am after three beers. After three beers, I am unafraid. I dance without thinking about how I look, without trying to remember what my feet should be doing. After three beers, I don’t give a fuck what you think about me. I stop trying to impress you.…
7 Books I Read in 2014
I am proud of myself. This year I read more than five books. Some of you read dozens, even hundreds. I did not. But I read more than five, which is an improvement over last year. Here are a few of them: 1. GIRL AT THE END OF THE WORLD Elizabeth Esther’s brand-new memoir is…
150 Actual Search Terms For My Blog (as Poetry)
Over the past few years this blog has granted me a unique glimpse into our collective humanity. Not only in the words we share and the comments we leave, but in the questions we ask when we are alone with our search engines. What follows are 150 actual search terms that led people to my blog…
Dear God, I Have a Few Complaints
Dear God, I have a few complaints. Don’t get me wrong – I like You. I believe in You. Generally speaking, I think You’re doing a decent job at this whole “being the God of the universe” gig. But still, there are a few things that I really just don’t get. First – Advent. Advent is…
What Are You Plugged Into Today?
Today I’m happy to share a guest post from Elora Nicole – a passionate author, artist, and story coach. Make sure you check out The Storytellers, where Elora curates a community for writers and creatives. _____ There are days spent wallowing in the dried up soil of my creativity. Whether it be for an email or blog post or curriculum…
Do You Read the Bible With Your Conscience?
A few months ago, I got to sit at a table with Derek Flood – a guy whose work has helped shape my thinking on difficult aspects of theology for few years now. Derek has a new book out this month called Disarming Scripture, dealing with the problem of violence in Scripture. His book tackles all the tough stuff– from genocide in…
A Prayer Into the Void
If this hole really is “God-shaped”… God must be vast indeed. If God can begin to touch (what feels like) the infinite depth of this chasm, God must be an infinite universe.
So That I Don't Forget
“What is saving your life right now?” Stephen asks me yesterday at church, and I say the first three things that come to mind: “Coldplay. Rohr. Hope.” The first two come and go — they’ll be different next month — but the third one has been close to my heart for a while: “For we…
When We Throw Stones
“Let him who is without sin throw the first stone.” That’s what they say, when religious leaders are questioned about their abusive and manipulative actions. “We all make mistakes. Nobody’s perfect. You wouldn’t want somebody airing all your dirty laundry, would you?” As if building an multi-million-dollar “ministry” or “church” on the backs of vulnerable followers…
I'm Tired of Owning
i’m tired of owning things boxes taped up and torn open again and taped up again but never really unpacked i’m tired of clothing and toys and furniture and all the trappings of should and supposed to and someday i’m tired of all the things we bought because they’re the sorts of things adults should…
Love Trumps Fear
“If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear.” (from I John 4) It’s one of my favorite passages in all…
Last Sunday
At Renovatus Church, there’s this liturgy we say every week before Communion: “This is the Table, not of the Church, but of the Lord. It is made ready for those who love Him, and for those who want to love Him more. So come, you who have much faith and you who have little. You…
When Writing is an Act of Hope
I bought a new journal last month. It’s a terribly ugly little thing – a ghastly shade of green with a thin, tight spine. When you look for a new journal during the first week of back-to-school, the options are few. But it does the trick. Over morning coffee, the pen bleeds across those black-and-white lines as…
Into the Winter
“…but the summers make up for it.” That’s what the people from Minnesota always said, when I complained about the long, cold winters. The summers make up for it. And I laughed at them as I packed my bags and boxes and headed south. Didn’t they realize that there were places where the summers didn’t…
Of Monsters and (Wo)men
Today Lindsay is sharing the story of how she’s fighting back against the darkness. She is honest, and brave. Let’s support her path to recovery (click here). 16. I am sitting in an uncomfortably hard blue chair in the guidance counselor’s office, staring at diplomas on the wall and cheesy motivational posters that are supposed to…
