• spiritual formation
    Featured

    Spiritual Formation: The Eight Stages of Growth

    Spiritual formation is rarely discussed in church. At least, I am sure I have taken in or endured as the case may be, thousands of sermons. The closest they seem to get is on the topic of discipleship, which is related, but not the same. We pore over books about the stages of child development or how a marriage grows, yet spiritual formation remains a bit of a mystery. Part of the reason for this is that, like most theories about spiritual or emotional growth, spiritual formation remains a bit of theory. Like the stages of grief, the actual living out of our spiritual lives is somewhat individualistic. Many hypothetical…

  • mercy
    Featured,  Spiritual Gifts

    Five Truths about the Gift of Mercy

    The gift of mercy is a rough gig. I used to say that all women go around with a broken heart. I projected this particular spiritual gift onto everyone because my heart regularly aches for those around me. It didn’t occur to me that not everyone’s heart does. Now I realize that almost anyone with the gift of mercy carries a heart wounded on behalf of others. And I also know now that not everyone has this gift. The world would be a quite different place if they did, and not necessarily better. But as is the case with any spiritual gift, immaturity can hamper its effectiveness. I believe spiritual…

  • silence
    Silence,  Spiritual Disciplines

    How Silence Affects Your Body, Soul, and Spirit

    When I think of silence, the first thing that pops into my mind is the Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. The line that most impacted me in my childhood was Silence like a cancer grows… Our society apparently took the warning very seriously because now silence is disappearing altogether. I remember once reading that thirty seconds of silence can really make a classroom uncomfortable. I tested that theory frequently and found that my students could generally withstand twenty seconds before someone raised their hand to dispel the awkwardness. As for myself, I filled my solitude with music. That the music was usually worship or at least spiritual didn’t…