News of violence has become heartbreakingly common in our world today. Each new headline is tragic and heavy. And while we may wish to shield our children from such realities, they are often more aware than we realize. As parents, caregivers, and faith leaders, we...
If you’ve been in ministry long enough, chances are you’ve had seasons when people became more exhausting than inspiring. Where the endless opinions, conflicts, and problems begin to blur your vision. Where you start reacting to issues instead of remembering the...
As a pastor or ministry leader, you surely have experienced times where the constant demands and difficult decisions begin to weigh you down. Or when you have the God-filled opportunity to walk alongside suffering people, yet begin to feel crushed by the pain being...
Let me tell you about a tree. Years ago, our staff was on a spiritual retreat in the Colorado mountains. Our guide, Matt Sertall, a Presbyterian author and pastor, invited us to walk into the forest with a strange challenge: “Go find a place that feels right. Say...
Can I tell you a story? Actually, three. The first begins in college, at Jacob’s Porch in Columbus, Ohio. It wasn’t a church in the traditional sense. It was a community of seekers, doubters, believers, and strugglers gathering around meals, scripture, conversation,...
