Exclusion as a Violation of the Self

Last week I came across this article that stated, being ignored is worse than being bullied. I had to stop and think about that statement for a second. Nevermind the article and the research, I wanted to just think about that statement, especially since we hear so...

Vocation: What/Who is Summoning You?

For the last seven to eight years I’ve really been exploring this idea of vocation, and it seems that it is a topic that I’ve had more and more conversations with people as of late. In fact, I blogged on this topic just a couple of months ago. In my...

Why ‘Pastors’ Become Therapists

Several weeks ago I was at The Hideaway Experience doing co-therapy along with another former ‘pastor’ turned therapist. It’s not unusual to find therapists and counselors who were former pastors, but I think that vocational movement is often looked...

Is Facebook Making Your Marriage Vulnerable?

[image by hikingartist] Chatter Magazine which is the great print/online monthly magazine for Irving Bible Church dedicated their October issue to technology. There are some really great articles in there like John Dyer’s Stop Bringing Your Bible to Church! My...

Our Identity in Social Media/Technology Engagement

[image by LollyKnit] Identity in Christ One of the most crucial passages of scripture in the Bible in regards to our identity is Mark 1:9-14: “9, And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. 10,...

Identity & Relationality

“The Quaker teacher Douglas Steere was fond of saying that the ancient human question ‘Who am I?’ leads inevitably to the equally important question, ‘Whose am I?’–for there is no selfhood outside of relationship. We must ask the...

Identity in Weakness

This post is an ongoing reflection on the book Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation by Parker Palmer. “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the...

Reclaimining Our “Birthright Gifts”

“We arrive in this world with birthright gifts–then we spend the first half of our lives abandoning them or letting other disabuse us of them. As young people, we are surrounded by expectations that may have little to do with who we really are,...

In Violation of our True Self

I have been returning time and time again to one of my favorite books on the topic of identity and vocation, Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation by Parker Palmer. I first read the book in 2002 when I was finishing up my M. Div. at Fuller...

Identity–>Boundaries–>Self Care

I’ve had a lot on my mind recently, and during that time I’ve been pretty convicted about several issues that I see interrelated. It originally arose because of my dismay at the real lack of boundaries in ministry and what affect that has on those caught...