It was election day here in New Zealand last Saturday and as I stood in line to cast my vote I started a conversation with an elderly English gentleman. He had come to New Zealand in 1968 on a world trip. Running out of money, he decided to stay. ‘Well, why […]
When I was on a 6-hour road trip back to university I picked up a hitchhiker. It was cold and wintery as I turned a corner on the Desert road and I saw a young man with his thumb stuck out. Thin, short hair and poorly clothed for the winter, […]
The shame of an attempt at suicide can cling onto you like the odor of some dirty old socks. You would do anything to get rid of that stench. Is that a good description of shame? That feeling of embarrassment at what you have done. You want to hide, run, cover it […]
When God has left the building, turning up the volume won’t help. At the school where I grow vegetables, it can be very noisy. I have a group of children that love to help and to get my attention they will often speak louder, and wave hands like windmills. It can […]
Life has a tragic way of repeating itself. It seems at times that we just go round an endless loop of repeating the same mistakes over and over again. Then someone says ‘forget what lies behind.’ One of my favorite classic movies is Groundhog day with a very young Bill […]
It’s always dangerous when we subconsciously create a ‘saviour’ out of a sinner. If you stand too close to the pedestal, of a venerated statue, you’ll get damaged by the cracks. I always cringed when someone would call me ‘Pastor Barry’. If possible I would always ask them to never do […]
We are all like druggies, wanting that quick fix to kill the pain. Be it a drug, some porn, a sale, a comfort food, an altar call, a dose of the ghost (Holy Spirit), or a faith formula to get what we want. Anything, just anything to avoid going deep, […]
What if this is not the worst-case scenario? What if it is the best-case scenario? How would your view of your current circumstances change? What if every person you encounter is simply doing the best they can with what they have? What if every person who misunderstands you and causes […]
For Mental Health we need a grounded spirituality. Beware of Woo Woo and La La Land and how they can subtly disconnect you from reality. A form of spiritual abdication. Do you like some ‘Woo-woo’ in your life? ‘Woo-woo’ refers to something that is ‘dubiously or outlandishly mystical, supernatural, or […]
What is the Bible? How an Ancient Library of Poems, Letters, and Stories Can Transform the Way you Think and Feel about Everything by Rob Bell. Book review by Cheryl Chastain I love books with a question as the title. In fact, I prefer the question books over the answer […]