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Christian Spiritual Growth
When Christians speak of Spiritual Growth - and almost all varieties of Christians use that phrase - it is our way of acknowledging that we need to change. Or rather, we need to BE changed by a power greater than ourselves. We believe that practicing Christians will inevitably be changed. Paul said it this way: If anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; behold, everything has become new. (II Cor. 5:17)
Beyond that, opinions vary greatly on how that change occurs, how quick the change comes, whether or not the change is accompanied by spectacular signs, and the various forms this change takes in our individual lives. But let not your heart be troubled when Christians disagree. That's invevitable when we are all seeking to make sense of the scriptures, the teachings of our various traditions, and the reality of our own experience.
Still, everyone seems to agree on one simple truth: Following Jesus Christ with a life of discipleship will change you. You cannot remain in Christ and remain the same.
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Jun 17, 2013
Books on Work: Decisive, Part Three
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During the years I was home schooling my children, I threatened to quit nearly every year during the month of March. After spending seven months practicing math drills, grading tests, and correcting papers, I found myself emotionally spent. Having been trapped indoors together throughout the long winter months, we all began to experience cabin fever.... Read More + |
Jun 6, 2013
Books on Work: Decisive by Chip and Dan Heath, Part One
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On Mondays in June we’ll be discussing Chip and Dan Heath’s latest book Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work. This week we cover the introduction through chapter four. Chip and Dan Heath want to help us make better decisions. It is not enough, they say, to understand why we make the mistakes we do. If we truly want to improve the... Read More + |
May 27, 2013
Books on Culture: The Life of the Body, week four
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Our young niece trailed behind my husband. “What’s this?” she asked. Dennis glanced back. “It’s a toadstool. It’s inedible.” He continued down the path, assuming Kristin followed. “It doesn’t taste good.” Dennis whipped around. “Didn’t I just tell you not to eat that?” he scolded. Little Kristin spit and stared at him with pooling eyes. Later my sister... Read More + |
May 22, 2013
Books on Culture: The Life of the Body, Week Three
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She’s only a girl—a girl with fire engine red hair and a thousand freckles. She limps on shrunken legs across the commons room and slides weakly into a chair at a glass table. Glancing around the room, she looks at those of us in scrubs like she’s figuring an escape route and when her eyes land on me, I notice the prominent cheekbones, the sunken eyes,... Read More + |
May 15, 2013
The Secret to Better Work and Life Is Not Rocket Science
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What if someone told you they knew the secret to a better life? What if they shared this secret with you? They promised you would be able to concentrate better, enjoy life more, increase productivity at work, decrease stress at work and at home, and have a better sense of self-esteem. It sounds too good to be true. But researchers at Lancaster University... Read More + |
May 6, 2013
Books on Culture: The Life of the Body
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“Being made one with Christ, we are made one with all who belong to Christ, united with the church in every time and place. One people…one body…” The pastor stands in front of the communion table and says these words, and I feel the power of truth course through me—enlarging all of who I am. One body. This is who we say we are. We use the terminology of... Read More + |
Apr 29, 2013
Books on Family: Not so Fast by Ann Kroeker, finishing up
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The calendar winds down and I stand on the brink of a new month—swept up in the afterbreeze of these fast-moving days. Between work and family, responsibilities and recreation, events and emergencies, April 2013 has made its blurry mark. Some of those dizzying 43,200 minutes have been spent reading Ann Kroeker’s Not So Fast: Slow-Down Solutions for... Read More + |
Apr 22, 2013
Books on Family: Not so Fast by Ann Kroeker, week four
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The morning has been a flurry of packing bags, counting underwear, finding missing shoes, choosing snacks, trying to pick up the living room, and reviewing the list of things-that-must-be-done-before-we-go. My husband and I bark orders and rush about so we can get into the car and head to our much-anticipated trip to Laity Lodge Family Camp in the Texas... Read More + |
Apr 15, 2013
Books on Family: Not So Fast by Ann Kroeker, week three
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When I first read Ann Kroeker’s book, Not So Fast: Slow-Down Solutions for Frenzied Families, I was single. It seemed counterintuitive to read the book, given the subtitle. But I had just met Ann and our fast-forming friendship led me to believe there would be gems for even the frenzied single. And I was right. I wrote about the slowed-down life for... Read More + |
Apr 8, 2013
Books on Family: Not so Fast by Ann Kroeker, week two
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“Some day, baby, when I am a man, and others have taught me as best as they can, they’ll sell me a suit and cut off my hair, and send me to work in tall buildings. And it’s goodbye to the sunshine, goodbye to the dew, goodbye to the flowers, and goodbye to you.” ~John Hartford “One second,” I whisper to Ian, who has sprinted from the living room to... Read More + |
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