There is a wonderful line in To Kill a Mockingbird. After Atticus and Jem return from a visit to the Robinson home, where Atticus is called an ugly name, Atticus looks at his son, Jem and says, “There’s a lot…
God’s knows the heart of single adults. Do you?
Recently a ministry acquaintance posted a very personal statement on Facebook about her life as a single adult and an affirmation of her worth and value as a person of worth created in the image of God to live and…
I’ve got Mother’s Day pain
It’s the week of Mother’s Day. And it’s that time of year that the church struggles to know what to do with women who aren’t mothers in the traditional sense. Pastors muse about, “Who gets a rose and who doesn’t?”…
The myth of the elite young athlete
I recently received an email from my brother-in-law that contained several video links. “Tell me what you think.” My brother-in-law wrote. I clicked and opened each link and watched my 8-year-old nephew goaltending a lacrosse goal. The video contained the…
Before I go: A Stanford neurosurgeon’s parting wisdom about life and time
In residency, there’s a saying: The days are long, but the years are short. In neurosurgical training, the day usually began a little before 6 a.m., and lasted until the operating was done, which depended, in part, on how quick…
Are single people the lepers of today’s church?
There are the well-meaning ladies who ask you about your husband and children and, when you say you don’t have any, suddenly run out of things to say to you. There are the women’s Bible studies scheduled on weekday mornings,…
Missing Church: Why I’m not a “Done” (Even If I Want to Be)
A couple of months ago, I posted about the experience of taking a break from attending church. It somehow garnered a lot more attention than I expected, enough that it prompted a follow-up question: Why go back? It’s a question that…
A long journey home
This is the third of three posts by Jason Coker, written in the days before and after his father died on Jan. 27. The first post can be read here and the second here. Jan. 30, 2015 I got the…
Redeeming the goodbyes
This is the second of three posts by Jason Coker, written in the days before and after his father died on Jan. 27. The first post can be read here. Jan. 16, 2015 I didn’t realize that this phone call…