It’s important to take time to reflect on where we stand in our spiritual lives, and assess things that may be distracting us.
All tagged spiritual practices
Dry
Just as the concept of one single breath is not enough to sustain us, neither is a “one-and-done” idea adequate to establish spiritual rhythms.
Reflection Roundup: On Our Knees
The community of faith is able to truly embody unceasing prayer when we acknowledge the joint prayers of Christians around the world and throughout Christian history.
On Reading the Bible
What I am about to say will sound so elementary that I risk losing you, my reader, before I even get to the end of this paragraph. But here goes. I want you to read your Bible.
The OODA Loop and the Overflow of the Heart
How can we apply the OODA loop – observe, orient, decide, act – to congregational leadership?
The Importance of Operational Pauses
In a world that values productivity – doing more and more – Jesus reminds us that faithfulness is greater fruit than fame. There’s always work to do … so we must begin in prayer.
Reflection Roundup: Honest and Curious
Liminality: it’s the ultimate “are we there yet?” And in fact, we’re not. If we’re honest, we’ll admit we don’t even know where there is, exactly, and lead with the spirit of contentment enjoying the missional pit stops with God while holding the destination loosely.
Discernment Is God’s Gift to the Church, Not to an Individual
I fear Christians are doing decision-making the wrong way. We are not lone wolves who must discern the will of God on our own. Spiritual gifts like discernment are given for the common good.
Serenity in the Savage
Next time you feel the savage overcoming the serene, try taking a moment to experience some element of nature.
You Are Loved
I now know (with all my heart) that I am deeply loved. Not because I have minimized my sin and helped others manage theirs, but simply because I exist.
Breathing Lessons
Although the app I was using intended this breath practice to inspire self confidence, it triggered my memory of the practice of breath prayers.
Led by the Word
We must desire to feast on God’s living word daily so that we can truly find nourishment and growth. Without it, we will surely die of malnutrition.
A Christian Yogi Preacher
I believe that God is present and at work in the church, the yoga studio, drug-infested neighborhoods, and anywhere else.
We Need a Ministry of Presence
What this person needed was someone to take the brunt of their anger, who would sit with them while they screamed.
Lay Your Head on a Stone
Finding rest from our work is a spiritual practice first introduced by God in the creation story. Even God models the ability to observe the sabbath period as an important part of our missional work in the world.
Starting with a Clean Slate
We must take a fresh look at our priorities, and the spiritual discipline of detachment is invaluable in this process.
Apathetic Apophatics Washing Dishes
I fear we’ve used our friend Brother Lawrence to excuse our apathetic prayer lives, assigning him words he never said.
Vulture Brain
There’s something unsettling about vultures. These birds that traffic in death. That subsist off another’s end. That fly circles around the weak and vulnerable, the dying and dead.
The Stories We Tell
We are all storytellers. We want people to see a piece of who we are, who we love, what humbles us, what makes us proud, what shatters us, what brings us peace.
Discipleship or Spiritual Formation? Time to Embrace One and Shelve the Other
Spiritual formation is a good and helpful way of describing our faith development. Discipleship calls us deeper.