As I prayed and pondered the beautiful life growing in my daughter’s womb so much began to well up in me! So many things I wanted to share about my Abba and his care for her! So I began to write Letters From Papa. The nurture and love of both of our parents set the…
The warmth of God’s presence can be elusive. In his secret journal Henri Nouwen is vulnerable about a dark season in which he couldn’t feel God’s love. He’d helped millions of other people around the world into a more tender and intimate experience with God, but he was in a Dark Night of the Soul.…
Recently I became a “Papa”! This is me looking into the eyes our first grandchild Juliet Bella! What a heart-pumping and face-illuminating joy this is for Kristi and me! Yet, it’s not easy for us to make space in our calendars and to save energy in our bodies to give quality care to her. This…
It was a defining moment when I faced my fear of failing and looking foolish in the most important purpose of my life. Before I tell you that story let’s chat a bit about success and failure. We all want to be a success. We want to make a positive difference for God and for…
Henri Nouwen in his book The Wounded Healer laments that most Christian leaders are not prepared to be spiritual leaders for hurting people. “Our service will not be perceived as authentic,” Nouwen warns, “unless it comes from a heart wounded by the suffering about which we speak. Thus, nothing can be written about ministry without a deeper understanding of…
A college student came out of Dallas Willard’s office wide-eyed, “Do you think Jesus can walk up to you?” Like many students in philosophy classes at USC he’d been drawn to the humble, wise, and radiant philosopher Willard. So he met with the professor for personal support and guidance. When the student asked about God,…
We can live in fullness of life in the presence of the risen Christ today — that’s the invitation of the Shepherd Psalm. But it begins with an audacious claim: “The Lord is my shepherd, he gives me life without lack.” Life without lack? You might question that. My life is full of lack —…
“Good Christians do their daily devotions.” That teaching puts pressure and guilt on people! It also generates a bifurcated life in which I meet with God for awhile and then I go off and live my life without God. We need to get free of “Quiet Time guilt” Dallas Willard says. Doing away with a…
“If there were a blood test for workaholism I’m sure Dallas would come up positive.” That’s a comment Jane Willard made to Gary Moon for his new biography Becoming Dallas Willard. (p. 138) You may relate to Jane or to Dallas. Kristi and I do, as do many of the men and women in ministry…
How audacious to claim, “I have life without lack because the Lord is my shepherd.” That’s the point of Psalm 23 according to Dallas Willard in his new book Life Without Lack. But I feel many examples of lack in my life and so do you. Is the poet and singer of Psalm 23 living…