Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 159-162

March 11, 2015Pastor's Blog

“At the heart of the Daily Office and the Sabbath is stopping to surrender to God in trust.” (pg. 156) How many of us have overcrowded schedules? Go ahead – raise your hand, we all do. Our lives are measured by successes or failures created with our hands while neglecting the living God. The One … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 156-159

March 10, 2015Pastor's Blog

“Stopping for Daily Office to be with God is the key to creating a continual and easy familiarity with God’s presence the rest of the day. It is the rhythm of stopping that makes the “practice of the presence of God”. (page 159) With the things that life brings to us on a daily basis, … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 153-156

March 9, 2015Pastor's Blog

“Many of us have lost our way, spiritually, in the whiteout of the blizzard swirling around us. Blizzards begin when we say yes to too many things. Between demands from work and family, our lives fall somewhere between full and overflowing. We multitask, so much so that we are unaware we are doing three things … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 148-152

February 28, 2015Pastor's Blog

John 12:24 There has never been an age so focused on itself as this one. It is in our songs, advertisements, entertainment, news, and schools, it seems to be everywhere,   Jesus tells us the simple truth. If we want a full life, one with meaning and relevance, we must die to ourselves. So much of … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 148-149

February 27, 2015Pastor's Blog

“I have wondered if the greatest loss we must grieve is our [own] limits.” In late December I sat in a quiet room looking over the past year; my blessings, failures and the ways I had grown. I realized that I’d grown to better understand my limits. The book calls it embracing the gift of … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 145-146

February 26, 2015Pastor's Blog

Psalm 37:7 “My greatest challenge in following Jesus Christ for over thirty years has been waiting on God when things are confusing.” Seasons of grief and loss create some of our most challenging moments as believers because we don’t understand the whys, hows, whats, and whens of what is happening in our world. The good … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 143-145

February 25, 2015Pastor's Blog

“Job screamed out in his pain, holding nothing back. He shouted at God. He prayed wild prayers. He doubted. He wept. He wondered where God is & why all this has happened to him.” (pg. 142-143) Have you ever asked God THE question: Why me Lord? Of course! It’s perfectly human & logical to wonder how … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 138-142

February 24, 2015Pastor's Blog

“When we are children, creating a defensive wall to shield us from pain can serve as one of God’s great gifts to us. The transition into adulthood, however, requires that we mature through our “defense mechanisms” of denial in favor of honestly looking at what is true – at reality. Jesus himself said, “You will … Read More

Emotionally Healthy Spirituality: Pages 135-138

February 23, 2015Pastor's Blog

“There is no greater disaster in the spiritual life than to be immersed in unreality. In fact the true spiritual life is not an escape from reality but an absolute commitment to it. Loss marks the place where self-knowledge and powerful transformation happen- if we have the courage to participate fully in the process. Loss … Read More