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There’s Rebellion in My Heart…
I’m pretty good at being a rebel. Not the kind where you rebel against anything and everything for no reason. The kind where you think something is stupid and refuse to do it. This is where I get tripped up with the whole writing/speaking thing every time. Every. Time. I didn’t know what I was getting myself into when I started the journey of writing a book. I didn’t know what the industry was like. That it is often more about who you are than the message you are trying to share… That if you don’t have a “platform,” i.e. a large following, you don’t stand a chance at getting…
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Don’t Judge Me…A Matter of Perspective
It really was innocent, but it looked scandalous. Let me take you back to my last winter youth retreat in my “cult”. I was super close to being out. In fact, I was already a closet rebel as this story will confirm. 😉 Click here to subscribe to my monthly newsletter. Our church had rented this small Christian camp for years, both for family camps and youth retreats. I loved the rustic chapel with its fireplace and knotty pine beams. I thought I knew every crook and cranny until my friend’s younger brother asked me if I’d ever seen the attic. Apparently there was a secret staircase in a closet…
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A Plane Ride, Politics, and Pharisees
Full Disclosure: This is a rant which may mention politics. But it’s more than politics. I spent the entire flight home talking with a beautiful woman named Patricia. She was sweet, kind, passionate, friendly, and liberal. Listening to Patricia, I was reminded again where Christians and the Conservative Right went wrong. Don't miss a thing. Click here to sign up for my newsletter. Patricia loves people, but she doesn’t sense that love from conservatives. She was raised in a church but struggles to link Jesus with the people and politics that claim His name. I feel her pain. Too often, Christian and political conservatives have one thing in common.…
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Feeling the Stretch
The shriveled clumps of grass clung weakly to the dirt. Brown and brittle, they crunched under my feet. It hadn’t rained in weeks. Everything was dry and dusty. Just walking around kicked up so much dirt that a light tan film constantly covered my feet and legs. My favorite summer camp was quickly turning into a desert. Click here to sign up for my monthly newsletter. We were desperate for some rain! “I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.” Psalm 143:6. I knew firsthand what it meant to be in a parched land and desire water. But what did it mean…
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A High Ropes Course Called Life…
I strongly dislike high ropes courses. But, I adore zip lines. This has been my dilemma as a youth pastor’s wife for the past five years. High ropes courses seem to go along with youth retreats and camp experiences. I hate them. They terrify me. But, I want to participate, to be a positive example to teens who are also terrified. Plus, there’s almost always a zip line at the end! Did I mention that I love zip lines? Don’t miss another thing! Click here to subscribe to my newsletter. For those of you who have never experienced a high ropes course, let me explain the horrors. High ropes courses…