• exhorter
    Exhorter,  Featured

    Why the Teacher and the Exhorter Need Each Other

    My primary gift is exhorter. One of the giveaways is that I write a blog in which I give people simple steps towards inner healing. That is what we exhorters do. We try to motivate everyone around us to get to know Jesus with these five simple steps! And we know it will work because it worked for us. When it comes to believing in others, we tend to be a bit gullible. But hey, that’s what makes us effective. We believe what we preach. But the free-spirited exhorter runs into issues pretty easily. We tell a lot of stories and we don’t mind using a verse or so out…

  • boss
    Boss,  Career,  Job

    What I Learned from My First Bad Boss

    My first experience with a bad boss puzzled me for years. Nearly eighteen years ago, I taught at a small Christian university in Kentucky. A single mom with four girls, I was incredibly grateful for my job. I kept my head down and taught my classes. Towards the end of the school year, the chair of my department called me in. I remember the moment quite clearly. I liked my boss. He was about thirty years older than me. I had met his lovely wife and, from my naïve standpoint, thought they must have a lovely marriage. He asked me if I had heard the rumors. I had not. Up…

  • abuse,  cancer,  Featured,  fired,  Pharisee,  Teacher

    Getting Fired Taught Me a Frightening Lesson

    I got fired about fifteen years ago for a lack of integrity as a Christian. At least that was the charge leveled at me, though I received no concrete examples of poor behavior, nor could I think of any. I was a single mom of four girls and worked as instructor at the local state university as my main occupation.  In the mornings, in exchange for tuition for all four girls, I taught two hours of junior and senior English at a local private Christian school.  Right away I noticed that tension pervaded the school.  The principal seemed gracious, but the vice principal, who I will call Janine, was a…