“We’re all storytellers.” The truth of the statement washed over my skin in tingly waves. I paused, drew a deep breath and continued our conversation about our recent Sparking Creativity Retreat. I had been incubating the idea for a retreat like this for years. Back...
“Peace can be difficult to feel because of the chaos that surrounds us.” I wrote that line more than a year ago for my 2019 Mindful Advent series, but is really true now. Everything in this year feels like chaos — the disruption of a pandemic, the helplessness created...
You may only know that Lent is a Christian season during which practitioners, “give something up,” as a spiritual practice. You may even know it is a season for preparing for Easter, or a big change more generally. This Lent which began for Christians on Feb. 26 has...
Last year, my family attended a Christmas Eve Catholic mass, as we usually do. Though I grew up as a Roman Catholic, I left that church for the United Church of Christ many years ago. Over the years, I have learned to appreciate the richness of the Catholic tradition,...
Each Christmas season, I make a ritual of watching the Frank Capra Christmas Classic, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Though I know there is a strong cult following for the movie starring James Stewart and Donna Reed, there is an equally large group of those who furrow their...
Last week I attended a free meditation class hosted by a local church. The leader, a very experienced mediation teacher, reflected that he often hears people push back about meditation — saying that it, and other mindfulness and self-care practices, were selfish. The...
This summer I began taking walks nearly every morning as an active extension of my meditation practice. Each morning, I stood up from my meditation cushion, put on walking clothes and shoes, and did NOT take headphones. Taking my first steps in the walk, I feel...
When my teenage angst raged in my late teens, I summarily dismissed the Roman Catholic faith in which I had been raised. I thought all the adults sitting in mass each week were just there out of habit or obligation. Through my limited teenage experience, I saw no...
Change is nothing new for me. Since leaving graduate school in 1980 I have lived in 14 different condos, houses and apartments. I have owned four homes in three different states. In that time frame I have held 13 different jobs (I worked for one company twice.)...
This post is the sixth in a series exploring the practice of Drishti (focus on a particular point, traditionally in meditation or yoga poses). Rev. Nicole Havelka, the usual author of this blog, writes about how her ordination anniversary provided a perfect reflection...
This post is the fourth in a series exploring the practice of Drishti (focus on a particular point, traditionally in meditation or yoga poses). My fellow pop-culture preacher, Rev. Jeff Nelson writes about how he connects to his breath as a way to stay focused in...
I had just finished a morning run. Dripping with sweat and in desperate need of a shower, I noticed my phone ringing. Ivy Beckwith, my friend and colleague on the Faith Formation Team at the national UCC was calling. I was intrigued, but let the call go to voicemail...
This blog is written for my occasional series, “Things Yoga Has Taught Me About Church.” You make friends fast when you line up at dawn in your spandex triathlon gear on a gorgeous, but chilly, Sunday summer morning. Having the unfortunate luck of being last in the...
Below is a letter I emailed (in two parts due to the 2,500 character limit on the site) to President Trump this morning. Regardless of your political persuasion, how might we take reasonable steps to assist the Syrian people? I know people out there are caring and...
Why don't we each do ONE thing that is a true practice of love. Not the fluffy, romantic stuff of greeting cards, romantic comedies and flower shops, but the real hard work of loving people who are hard to love. -- Listen to someone with whom you disagree before...