change
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Those of us who live in the north are reminded this time of year to put together an emergency kit. We put in a flashlight, hand warmers, something to kneel on, jumper cables, and more into a box that we keep in the trunk for the next few months. Because we never know when…
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Breaking Our Fast
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5 min read
Of all the spiritual disciplines, I am quickly coming to the conclusion that this one is the most important: the discipline of breaking a fast. The foundation of the word discipline is in speaking of common order–and one’s relationship to order. When we speak of the church’s laws and principles, we refer to the “doctrine and discipline”…
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Origin stories are overrated
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1 min read
I tell people they won’t get the origin when they ask. That isn’t the story they actually want. That jumbled mess of confusion and diminished dreams pierced by a stunning bit of clarity. That sounds like a grand story of adventure and it is always mundane, normal. The story equivalent of a ham sandwich.…
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The New Coke Effect
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2 min read
One of the world’s most famous failures was “New Coke”. It is often trotted out as a reason people don’t like change: a colossal mistake in which the Coca-Cola Company dared to change their signature drink. As the story goes, the change was a failure and the world went back to normal. Except that isn’t…
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I am so over your sensitive ego
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2 min read
You know I’m not a dick, right? I have listened to your concerns. We have talked things over. I’ve even come up with ways to accommodate you. I’ve done my part. And having had your concerns heard, talking things over, and been accommodated, you have one small part to play. To quit whining. I don’t…
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The Scandal of Lent
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3 min read
Every year I struggle with Lent. I struggle with what we are really called to do. Certain things are different, and yet we don’t really live all that differently. We fast or we take on new things or we mark our worship differently. But something doesn’t ring true about it for me. As I wrote…