Author’s note: the following experience took place several years ago as I was going through The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. As I wrestled in the First Week with my theology around sin, God used a unique image to transform my thinking. Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and […]
Making the Most of a Pandemic
Many prophets and would-be prophets said that 2020 would be a year of vision… Hmm; not too hard to pair “2020” with “vision.” When Covid hit about March, the year of vision suddenly seemed murky and unstable. It seemed we had anything but vision! Who knew how the virus transmits? Who knew if masks help? […]
The End of the Story
“And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.” (Colossians 3:15, NLT). “Let the peace of Christ [the inner calm of one who walks daily with Him] be the controlling factor in your hearts […]
Limited Capacity
I must admit I thought this would be over by now. Call me optimistic (or call me naïve); but I somehow mitigated my emotions by letting myself believe that by summer’s end this would all blow over. Like the flu season comes to an end, I surmised that, surely, Corona virus season would be over […]
The Gift of Presence
“Do you believe that God is with you, right now while the lightning crashes overhead and the creek rises below?” The two college students I addressed had been leading all through the long hard day, and they glanced around them, their eyes wildly looking for some sense of safety and security. We had evacuated an […]
Disorientation to Reorientation
A month ago I wrote a blog post on the power of lament. I described my personal process of lament as I struggled to come to terms with the radical changes our world is going through. I discovered how important it was for me to allow myself to feel and be with, the roller coaster […]
Called to Adversity
The cold rain pelted us; the rushing river was already full and continued to rise as we huddled on the bank trying to stay warm. All 13 of us moved together like penguins, stamping our feet and trying to generate as much warmth as we could for one another. We made constant adjustments to the […]
