Below you will find the latest letter I sent to the congregation with whom I am serving. For some reason I went a little philosophical with this one. I sure hope it makes sense. I hear in my writing an
Is it just me, or does the Jenga-like quality of life feel especially close to the surface these days. Precarious. Teetering. Unstable. Somehow just looking all that is changing can fill, even the heartiest of us with fear. “It could
Earlier this week The Seattle School held its 2021 Instructional Team Orientation retreat, during which Dr. President Derek McNeil delivered an address. He organized his talk around “Sankofa.” Which as you may know, is a word from the Akan Twi
Staying Alive by David Wagoner Staying alive in the woods is a matter of calming down At first and deciding whether to wait for rescue, Trusting to others, Or simply to start walking and walking in one direction Till you
Quantum theory also tells us that the world is not simply objective; somehow it’s something more subtle than that. In some sense it is veiled from us, but it has a structure that we can understand. John Polkinghorne I’m grieving
“I’m not a foodie; I’m an eatie. I don’t have anything against foodies. I just don’t have the time or the interest to do that much research.” Jim Gaffigan Stand-up comedy can be – among other things – prophetic. I
Last trimester a student posted a link to this video in our course’s chat. I have gone back and watched it number of times since then, so I thought I’d post it here so I can have a record of
The Right Reverend Richard Bott is the current Moderator of the United Church of Canada. He composed this beautiful prayer for when we put our masks on, and has given permission for it to be shared (asking only that we attribute it
Christ is risen! _ _! “Death and taxes,” well… after the resurrection of Christ, I suppose taxes are the only inevitable thing remaining. Death doesn’t win! The grave isn’t the last word. Thanks be to God! It’s often said because
Indigo by Ellen Bass As I’m walking on West Cliff Drive, a man runs toward me pushing one of those jogging strollers with shock absorbers so the baby can keep sleeping, which this baby is. I can just get a
What makes the Gospel offensive isn’t who it keeps out, but who it lets in. Rachel Held Evans Rachel Held Evans died on May 4th, 2019. Many of us had been praying for her after learning she was placed in
“Tomorrow, & Tomorrow, & Tomorrow” By William Shakespeare (from Macbeth, spoken by Macbeth) Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,To the last syllable of recorded time;And all our yesterdays have lighted foolsThe way to
Spring Song by Lucille Clifton the green of Jesus is breaking the ground and the sweet smell of delicious Jesus is opening the house and the dance of Jesus music has hold of the air and the world is turning
“Who what am I? My answer: I am the sum total of everything that went before me, of all I have been seen done, of everything done-to-me. I am everyone everything whose being-in-the-world affected was affected by mine. I am
“The day you die is better than the day you are born. It is better to spend your time at funerals than at festivals. For you are going to die, and you should think about it while there is still
Lynette, Pascal and I invite you to spend a weekend with them our home. Spend time talking and sharing lives, discussing relational ministry and relational church-planting. And spend time with their Christ-commons (Quest). Connecting weekends are a great retreat and stimulus
“Where’s your passion?” “I’ve lost my passion?” “I can’t find my passion?” “Has anyone seen my passion?” I’m beginning to wonder whether passion might be a tad over-rated. Maybe we are passion-crazed like we are sex-crazed. Don’t get me wrong
Following up to my “U-Theory and the Cross” post. One aspect of the U-Theory that Senge and the rest did not seem to speak to was the process of ongoing transformation. In my personal life – especially my spirituality –
Paragraph The reflective and discursive book, Presence: Human Purpose and the Field of the Future by Peter Senge, Otto Scharmer, Joseph Jaworski and Betty Sue Flowers invites readers into the exploration and development of the “U-theory” of learning and change.
Hallelujah! Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and to those in the tomb Christ is giving life. Spring Song by Lucille Clifton the green of Jesus is breaking the ground and the sweet smell of
A Psalm of Life WHAT THE HEART OF THE YOUNG MAN SAID TO THE PSALMIST by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow I Tell me not, in mournful numbers, Life is but an empty dream! For the soul is dead that slumbers, And
“Solitude“ by dwight j. friesen The text reads: “For the secret of a man’s being is not only to live . . . but to live for something definite.” – Fyodor Dostoevsky
The Beloved Disciple records many of Christ’s statements of self and mission like his “I am…” and “I have come…” declarations. One of these is recorded in the tenth chapter of the John’s Gospel. It is here we witness Christ
Before Lynette and I were married – like most young lovers, I suppose – I was certifiably nuts about her. Though we first knew each other as kids and had hung out together through much of our junior and senior
I been so swamped lately I don’t know which way is up. We spent part of last week in Canada last week, visiting my folks. It was nice to be together though we almost missed the ferry on our way
A little more than 50 years ago, Nobel laureate Erwin Schrödinger delivered a series of lectures which – as they often do – turned into a book entitled, “What is life?” Schrödinger’s exploration of this question has been visited and
The spiritual directors who have walked alongside me throughout my life journey are one of the greatest gifts I have ever received. These unique people play a particular role our lives. Within the swath of Christian traditions we generally speak
The other day in a session with a spiritual directee, our conversation led us to explore Divine punctuation. Gracie Allen once said, “Never put a period where God puts a comma.” We seem to endlessly edit God’s text. Maybe God’s
Was friend recently talking with a friend about the old saying which suggests that Christ-followers live in two worlds. Do we though? How are we to think about this? I’m not sure we want to have one foot in each
I’m in the process of grading a stack of research papers for a course at Mars Hill Grad School. At the same time I have some writing deadlines that are coming due in my doctoral program. So I’ve been spending
