God Sees Us When We Ugly-Cry
As I collapsed onto the cold kitchen floor, I began to cry—ugly cry. I was exhausted. In what felt like a blink of an eye, I went from mom of two busy dirty blonde toddlers to a mom of four. …
The Disciplemaker Team
Relinquishing Our Programs for Happiness
To go spiritually deep, and not wide, invites us to come to terms with a cluster of vulnerabilities we all share—three instincts that touch our deepest human longings: control, affection, and security. This orientation is so pervasive in the human …
Leadership: It’s Always Being Now
Being present isn’t just a means for finding and sustaining our calling; being present is essential for carrying genuine spiritual authority in the marketplace. There is a line in an old Van Morrison song that goes, “And it’s always being …
Why Lent is Good for Your Brain and Your Soul
Would you rather inflict pain on yourself than be alone with your own thoughts? That was the question some researchers posed a couple of years ago. In an unusual study, they put people in a room alone with no devices …
Rhythm as the Heart of Leadership
When was the last time you paid attention to the cycles that surround our lives? Day and night. Waking and sleeping. Working and resting. Every aspect of our environment is ruled by a coming and going. Rhythms and seasons are …
Becoming A Strategic Monk in the Marketplace
Who do you know who carries substance as a leader? Not extraordinary talent or compelling charisma or impressive expertise, just substance. Weight of character. An unusual presence. We might call it spiritual gravitas. Such men and women rarely seek the …
Gratitude, Your Wonder Drug
What if I told you that there was a pill that was scientifically proven to dramatically improve your state of being—not just a temporary high but a wholistic enhancement of your body, mind, and soul? A pill that could positively …
3 Key Church Relationships for Curing Racism
I believe local churches engaged in the work of ethnic conciliation need to establish three types of relationships to represent the Kingdom of God and accomplish human flourishing in their community: Colaborers Compadres Cobelligerents. Colaborers These our churches and parachurch …
Grief is the Gift that No One Wants
Let me say this before I say anything else. If you are in a season of grief and loss, nothing I can say will take away the pain that you are experiencing. Nothing. Nor would I want to do that. …
What a Prostitution Survivor Taught Me About Joy
I worked for a community mental health clinic in downtown Seattle for the first two years after graduate school. The clients at this location were considered the most severely traumatized and chemically dependent residents in the city. On my first …