Have you noticed that there is a lot of anxiety out there these days? Whether explicit and obvious, or implicit and underlying, many of us are feeling anxious or stressed. But we follow Someone who is called the Prince of Peace. Maybe that could make a difference in how we deal with challenges, troubles, hardships that cross our path. Maybe peace could actually become our operating system.

When we talk about an operating system, we mean the basic underlying software that helps a...

Transformation. I’m not sure why, but I am completely enamored with this topic. There is just something about process and the ability to change over time. Especially intriguing is the mystery of how God is the one who initiates and we cooperate with it all.

I facilitated an Enneagram workshop last week and I mentioned that even if you walked away from the Enneagram today and never looked at it again, you would be ok. But, I said, there’s a bit if here. IF you continued to be a...

On my desk is a little woodcarving of a single, simple word. It’s a biblical word, but it isn’t a word we use much in everyday language. It isn’t even a word that most modern Bible translations use anymore. The word? Abide.

In modern versions of John 15, the word that used to be translated “abide” is usually now simply “remain.” That’s perfectly fine, but my heart still loves the word “abide,” as in:

Abide in me as I abide in you....

Turn on social media and Marie Kondo is everywhere teaching people how to "declutter" to simplify their lives.

We can’t help ourselves. We are going to join the conversation on Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. If you haven’t seen the Netflix show or read the book, that’s ok. We’re going pass through the subject on our way to a deeper dive into why we’re tempted to cling to things and how letting go can help our souls.

Marie isn’t teaching this directly, but...

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by your life? Do you ever feel like you’re under a pile and there is no way to dig out? Most of us feel that way at one point or another.

I’ve noticed that my own negative thoughts and expectations can add another layer of weight when things aren’t going well. I burden my already heavy heart with should’s and self-judgments. It makes for a wicked brew of emotions and circumstances.

This is easier to do when we are sick or when life throws a...

Last week, I talked about a growing community of friends who will be joining Gem and me for An Unhurried Lent. We’ll begin three weeks from today on March 6, Ash Wednesday.

So, again, why Lent? What’s the big deal? Some resist practices like Lent and other similar ones for fear that we’ll think we’re earning something from God rather than continuing to acknowledge that our salvation is rooted in freely-given grace and not in our own works of earning favor.

Spiritual...

In less than a month we enter the season of Lent. We invite you to enter this season with us as we prepare for An Unhurried Lent, living faithfully in our following of Jesus.

Today on the podcast we’ll talk a little about Lent in general, then we’ll unpack the more specific idea of An Unhurried Lent.

The goal of this journey together is to live more faithfully into our following of Jesus. It involves saying the right “Yeses” and the right “Noes.” In a...

The practice of Lent has become a place of grace for me over the last number of years. Some feel that Lent is a failure to recognize that our salvation is rooted in grace. But Lent isn’t about earning favor. It’s actually about recognizing the habits in our lives that keep us from the free grace God is always offering. Lent makes space for the reception of grace.

Simply put, Lent is the period of six weeks (not including Sundays) leading up to Easter. It starts on Ash Wednesday...

In An Unhurried Leader, one of my favorite chapters is titled “Questions That Unhurry Leaders.” It’s rooted in the Romans 8 passage that ends in these memorable lines:

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)

So nothing can actually...

The most unremarkable part of a grapevine is where the vine and branch meet, but it is the most remarkable place where growth occurs.

A few years ago we spent a long weekend in a beautiful home on a vineyard. While visiting the Napa region of CA, we had the treat of being hosted by a master gardener. We ate beautiful food and drank amazing wine while seated at a picnic table overlooking the rolling hills and fruit-laden vines. We talked, laughed and shared all the way up to sunset. As you...