“Shame is an intensely painful feeling or experience of believing that we are flawed and therefore unworthy of love and belonging.” — Brené Brown We’re following up on last week’s topic “Why asking for help is so hard” and diving deeper into shame. At work, at home, or in everyday life, you might be experiencing … Continue reading “Shame: Why asking for help is so hard pt. 2”
Everyone has had fleeting thoughts and questions about their faith, so what do you do with them? Maybe doubt wasn’t welcomed in your church or family growing up. Have you ever wondered why? It’s usually because a lot of followers of Jesus only have one category for doubt. Doubt=bad. But when you lump all doubt … Continue reading “What do you do with doubt?”
Okay, asking for help is hard but aren’t friends supposed to be comfortable being honest about how things are really going? It seems like we should be able to rely on our friends but more often than not people are uncomfortable asking for help. What’s the deal with no one asking for help when they … Continue reading “Why asking for help is so hard”
Psalm 42 is one of the most well known Psalms of all time, mostly due to the visceral, moving imagery of its opening verse: “As the deer pants for the flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.”
Let’s talk about your new favorite topic: How to read ancient Hebrew poetry. Don’t leave. Seriously, you’ll be good at this and you’ll be happy you kept reading. If you want to skip straight to the funny story, scroll down to “I had just started dating…”
What do you think of when you hear the word boundary? Do you think of a brick wall? A termination of your relationship? Or a sign of rejection?
I loved fairytales when I was a kid. (I still do. Give me Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia any day and I’m a happy camper.) I loved getting lost in a make-believe world where anything was possible. In that world, the limitations of being a kid were of little consequence.
Have you ever gone to church before and thought, “I wish I could bottle this feeling up and take it home with me”? Whether it was the tangible presence of the Lord during the bridge of your favorite song, the insightful preaching of the biblical text, or the encouragement that comes from gathering together with other believers, we can often leave church with a tinge of sadness, knowing that such an experience comes only once every seven days.
When followers of Jesus come face to face with brokenness, what do we do? Maybe for you, brokenness stirs up feelings that you’re not quite sure what to do with or you don’t quite understand how to engage it.
Sometimes on Saturday mornings our bedroom door cracks open and I see the shadowy outline of tousled hair and an oversized t-shirt sneak into our room. This small visitor crawls quietly between me and my husband, as the early morning light peaks over the window sill. Everything is quiet.
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