People always ask me, “OK, so we know what you are against, but what are you for? I know what they mean by this. They want me to say what my beliefs are or what denomination I belong to so they can give me their preprogrammed objections to those beliefs or my organization. This type of discussion will never be a real conversation. It will only be an us versus them argument that never ends. Those who agree with me... Read more
Several years ago, after spending about 20 years in organized religion as a pastor, I experienced something very real and traumatic when everything that I had stuffed down for 20 years came to the surface. A friend of mine describes it as a beach ball I could no longer keep underwater. It came to the surface in a dramatic way, and I knew that I had to face it instead of ignoring it once again. Eugene Gendlin said, “What is... Read more
Photo by RDNE Stock project: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-group-of-volunteers-assisting-an-elderly-person-on-a-black-wheelchair-for-charity-6646917/ Hey Sally. This is Ruby. Thanks for being my spiritual buddy and giving me your number to text. I’m trying to make sense of all this. You guys bought me some groceries and accepted me into your group. Well, not completely; I still have to say a prayer, and then there’s the membership class. To teach or lead, I have to prove myself in various ways, and even my gender might limit me substantially.... Read more
All right, don’t string me up… But, when we say “never forget,” when speaking of 9/11, do we also mean that the countries we attacked should never forget either? Ultimately, the wrong thing to do is to retaliate, hold grudges, and kill. But sometimes, we think our group is more important than the other groups. Our deaths are more significant, our suffering more noteworthy, and our wrongs more easily forgiven. Our notions of a retributive god and personal and national... Read more
I wasn’t always a theologian. But somewhere, in the middle of my journey, I decided that I wanted to be a pastor and it kind of came along with the territory. At first, I loved the systematic methodology of it all because I thought that it might somehow bring clarity to all this division, not just in politics, but in our understanding of God. Years and years later, my experience confirmed that there really is no unity among believers in... Read more
A couple of weeks ago I published A blog about my paranormal experience at the hotel that my book, The Hotel, was based upon. Toward the end of the blog, I made this assessment: I was very simply moved by this experience. It’s not my new religion, but it also doesn’t make me want to return to my old one. It was very simply just an enlightening experience that I would gladly do again. Just like I’m not an expert... Read more
My husband and I have had a cold for a few days now, and we have been taking care of each other with meds, fluids, lots of rest, and sleeping in a bit. When I got up this morning, I checked Facebook and read a few posts by some of my favorite writers/friends (Jim Palmer Barbara Symons, Paul Anthony, Wallis, Karl Forehand, Joe Machuta, Doug Wentz ). Then I listened to the Sunday Live that Aaron Tomlinson does on Facebook... Read more
When I discovered systematic theology, it was almost an instant thing that I wanted more. In the business world, there were systematic methodologies that drove quality and efficiency. If I could apply something like that to my quest for understanding God, then everything would be right in the world, and I would be able to share that with others. So, shortly thereafter, I finished my bachelor’s degree at a seminary and dove feet first into ministry. Jesus never said... Read more
I want to remove the word mercy from my vocabulary, or at least when I am talking about spiritual things or about God and religious things. I was a pastor and when we referred to mercy, we meant that it was not getting what I deserved. Because we saw God as retributive, mercy was like a pardon and helped us escape God’s retributive justice. Most people even if they are not religious, see this word as something along those lines.... Read more
My most vivid memories are of junior high. In those days, parents would turn their children out and let them play for most of the day in the Summer. When dinner was ready, they would find us and call us home. Video games were rudimentary then, and we only had a few TV stations, so the best thing to do was go outside and discover the great outdoors. For my friends and my brothers, we chose the path of... Read more
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