CategoriesSpiritual Conversation by

Is this the new normal?

A Pastoral Reflection on Violence in Our Society
By Keith Anderson

 

Every time another shooting erupts—in schools, in sanctuaries, on neighborhood streets—we ask the same anguished question: “Is this the new normal?”

 

It happened again. Families are grieving loved ones whose lives were cut short. Children are left shaken, carrying fears that no child should carry. Parents drop their kids off at school, wondering if they will be safe, and too many of us have begun rehearsing worst-case scenarios when we enter public spaces. Some buy weapons. Others send children with bulletproof backpacks. Schools practice lockdown drills. Many quietly avoid large gatherings. We are learning to live with fear, to anticipate trauma, to prepare for violence.

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CategoriesMentoring Matters, The Art of Dialogue by

Mentoring and Hospitality: Embracing Risk, Vulnerability, and Transparency

Mentoring Always Involves Risk

Mentoring is a risk.  Being mentored can be costly.  Being a mentor can require paying a price.

These are probably not words you want to hear if you are:

  • already a mentor or mentee,
  • considering becoming a mentor,
  • thinking about finding a mentor.

Mentoring requires one essential posture: hospitality. We create an open and free space for another person. As mentors, we open ourselves to the work of the Spirit in another.  As mentees, we open our inner soul space. There is an emerging and (hopefully) growing transparency.   Read More

CategoriesSpiritual Conversation by

How to Read the Bible

How to Read the Bible Differently

Growing up, I became convinced I knew how to read the Bible: as content to ‘master.’ Its purpose seemed to be information, instruction, and data. I took an Old Testament class in college. Our exams primarily focused on recitation of the chronology of kings and prophets as if the primary purpose was to memorize a historical timeline.

 

Two people messed with that view and gave me a different understanding of the interaction between the Bible and faith: Jesus and Grandma McJunkin. Read More

CategoriesMentoring Matters, Spiritual Conversation by

Great questions for spiritual friendship

Mentors ask great questions.  We don’t always know the impact our questions will have until they are heard by the mentee.  Often, these great questions emerge from a pool of mentors, perhaps as starters or simply as something to introduce at the right moment.  

 

These questions can also serve you well as you journal—simply writing thoughts, prayers, experiences, questions, memories, in a carefully kept notebook for you to read again. Journaling is a spiritual practice that takes you deep into your inner landscape.  Many find it a valuable way to explore fears, dreams, aspirations, and convictions through regular writing.

 

We’d love for you to keep these questions for spiritual friendship close at hand. That’s why we’ve created a printable PDF of spiritual mentoring questions—a free resource that includes all 25 questions and the first practice prompt. Print it, tuck it into your journal, or bring it to your next mentoring conversation. Read More

CategoriesSpiritual Conversation by

The Door Is Open: A Blueprint for Prayer from Psalm 5

Skeptical About ‘Steps’ to Prayer?

When I read or hear someone tell me there are five steps or three steps to prayer, spiritual formation, or knowing God, I become skeptical. I once took a 10-booklet course on steps to Christian maturity. I filled in all the blanks, read, and prayed, but two months later, I still wasn’t mature. Did I miss a step, or did it just not take? Was it the course—or was it the student?

Psalm 5: A Blueprint for Prayer

When I read Psalm 5 the other day, the image of a blueprint came to mind. I wrote in my journal: “Psalm 5 is a blueprint for prayer.” Or even better—what if it invites us to imagine what might be in the mind of an architect who draws up such a blueprint? It’s a visual representation of the architect’s craft, artistry, and imagination. Read More