You shouldn’t read this book…or maybe you should. It made me question a lot of my worldviews and how I see myself. Am I a feminist? A personist? Why do we still need to fight for faith and equality? What has the church been doing all this time? #sexism #racism #womensordination #patriarchy #complementarianism #headship #socialjustice #equality #bookreview
We all have inner dialogue that plays on repeat and forms our core values about ourselves. What happens when that inner dialogue repeats negative messages hour after hour? The Toll of Negative Inner Dialogue I asked my students to spend ten minutes writing down their goals last week. Some of them came up with impressive lists of what they’d like to accomplish. A few just sat there. The next day, I asked them to list all the barriers they see…
Back-to-School Confession “Whatever happens today, tomorrow, this week, next week, or twenty years from now,” I said, “remember that you are loved.” I stood in front of 70 students and 20 staff members trying to facilitate the beginning-of-the-year school rules exercise. The room felt snug and a bit muggy. Ripe little bodies wiggled and released their scents on the faint breeze from an open window. Returning students nodded slightly at my words. New students looked a bit stunned. “I love…
This week’s Self-care Sunday continues the theme of freedom. A Clean Bill of Health “Everything looks great!” the service manager told me, “you’re all set for another five-thousand miles.” For some reason, knowing that my car had no problems made me feel like I’d gotten a no-cavity report from the dentist. The freedom of having a trouble-free car made me happy. I pulled out on the road and headed to the other end of town to pick up a few…
Can a Bird Motivate Me? “There’s a rare bird in Anchorage,” I said. Pedro rolled his eyes. “It’s a hawfinch,” I explained. “They live in Europe.” Pedro may have sighed AND rolled his eyes. “I suppose you want to go look for it?” I grinned. “Absolutely! While you hang out with Laura, Louis, and Abel, I’ll just pop into Anchorage and pick up some things at Costco and look for the bird.” “What about the weather?” he asked. “No snow…
It is Better to be Silent… I read a heart-breaking post on Facebook this evening. A woman attends a church where the pastor—whose qualification consists of a seminary degree—has pulpit-shamed his congregation into abandoning their medications for depression, anxiety, and other mental illnesses. The woman fears for her friend, who followed the pastor’s counsel and has slipped further into depression. I cannot remain silent any longer. Churches should stay silent on the issue of mental health rather than diminish the…
