Back in the 1980s when the world was still trying to figure out how to get a handle on the pandemic of AIDS, I came home from work one day and had a letter from the American Red Cross. I…
Why am I so tired?
I’ve spent the last three months moving at what feels like a break-necking pace. From the demands of being a bi-vocational pastor to juggling calendars, spending four weekends attending weddings, buying my first home, moving, preaching, leading two weekend retreats,…
Raising a lover – not a fighter
Chances are you haven’t met my almost five-year-old, except for those obligatory readers from my extended family (hi mom!). I happen to think he’s amazingly brillant and brilliantly amazing. I’m sure this is why he has a healthy self-esteem. Every…
Hope is my friend
I was cruising through the list of notification on the GoodReads web site when one caught my eye. “Hope is your friend.” Of course, it was a notification that someone named Hope and I had made a social media connection,…
Caring for the caregivers
Caregiving is a ministry. A caregiver is usually defined as an unpaid friend or family member who provides caring assistance for someone who suffers a long term physical or emotional illness. As my wife and I have journeyed alongside members…
Being on the other side
I visit a lot of folks in the hospital as part of my job. I know how to find clergy parking. I know how to hunt folks down when the hospital staff isn’t as helpful to tell you where a…
Three responses to 9/11 grief
Eleven years ago on September 11, I was in college. I was getting out of a Tuesday morning class when I heard people talking about an airplane crash. As I walked back to my apartment, I heard more and more…
“. . . as you love yourself.”
If Jesus were pastoring in a mainline, Protestant church today, and were asked the same question scribes and scholars ask in Mark 12.28-31 (What is the greatest commandment?), I think he’d omit the “. . . as you love yourself”…
Prodigals and those who love them
Even if you are the parent of a child who has never rebelled, been in trouble, or broken your heart, please read the rest of this blog. If you have never encountered a day of difficulty in raising your children,…
Find meaning
Not all stories have happy endings, but by the grace of God all stories may acquire meaning. Face it. Told one way, our lives become tales of loss. Lost youth, loves, jobs, opportunities, integrity, health, family, friends, energy, vision, hope—there…
Worlds colliding
As a pioneer in the field of grief, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross used to hold workshops all over the world. In these workshops people didn’t just learn about grief; they had a chance to do deep grieving of their own. A friend…
How spaces become places
Have you ever thought about the difference between places and spaces? A place (as I would define it) is a location with determined boundaries. A space is the opposite; it is a location with undetermined boundaries. Examples may help here….