It felt like they were trying to earn my approval, my love, my acceptance. That if they just did things right, then I would give them some sort of a royal nod of approval. Earned love, I believe, is not really love. Earned acceptance and approval always has this fear […]
Faith
75 posts
It’s so easy to be caught up in doing. We measure ourselves by our output or lack of it. We so easily judge others by what they do—how much they do and the effectiveness of what they do. We feel “so guilty” when we don’t live up to expectations: God’s, […]
Is depression caused by a lack of faith? Find hope through grace and self-compassion, leaving toxic church shame behind. Where are you, God? I thought that if I prayed more, read my Bible more, attended church more, gave more money, then I would feel better. I look at everyone else, […]
Look at the birds of the air. Break the “magnetic” grip of anxiety. Discover how looking at and considering nature can ground your brain in providence. Anxiety can be like a magnet. It can grab your attention and hold it in its grip. This energy of focus can exhaust […]
I keep trying to get things right, but there’s no more penance to pay. It’s all been taken care of. I woke up the other morning with this phrase running through my head. ‘No more penance to pay’ What does this word ‘penance’ mean? Penance comes from the Latin […]
They wanted me to try harder. But when you’re in a dark hole of depression, or you don’t have the skills, energy, or even understanding, it can feel like yet another stone of struggle to carry. Confusion reigns, and the self-loathing chatter begins. It cycles around and around in the […]
Perhaps it’s the little ones where we should give our focus. What would a church for the ‘little ones’ look like? There is a church that I drive past most weeks, and as I do, my heart sinks. Years ago, I went into this church building several times and […]
I have a slippery memory. Memories of the good can slip away, but having a habit of recording the good can change our thinking in wonderful ways. My mother kept a red ledger book in one of the kitchen drawers, and it kept her. It kept her grounded in the […]
Some people believe in luck; I don’t. I believe in wisdom and work, empowered with faith to build a boat that catches providential wind. I remember the first time I bought a lottery ticket. I’ve only ever done this twice. I remember all the thoughts that raged around in me. […]
Sometimes I feel alone in the struggle, but when I listen deep I sense a providence. A providence I can lean into. It was the strangest thing I have experienced in a dog’s behaviour. Our family once had a dog that leaned. He would come alongside you, cross his legs, […]