Insecurity is something that everyone battles. It’s the feeling that I’m not good enough, smart enough, or talented enough. That I can’t do what other people can. But, no matter how insecure you feel, you are not alone. God sees your insecurity very differently than you do. Rather than causing us to give up, discover […]

To understand what a person really wants, we have to really know them. We have to know what they like and don’t like, What motivates them, and what they care about. We need to understand how they feel about things. This is also true in our relationship with God. There’s one feeling that powerfully motivated […]

If you’ve ever struggled with negative emotions like grief, depression, or anxiety, you know how difficult it can be. Maybe you looked for help in the church and were told, “You’re struggling because you need to pray more and give these feelings over to God.” Maybe you were treated as if your emotions were a […]

Everything has a beginning. An origin story that explains our history and values. They are the myths and legends of the past that inform how we live today. And, while some legends fade over time, others gain strength in our imaginations and have the power to change the course of history. Some origin stories have […]

If you ask people if they believe in God, many of them would say yes. But their explanations of who God is and what he’s like would be radically different. Even in a church setting, we would find surprisingly different and varying beliefs about what God is like. And while belief is crucial to a […]

Being skeptical can be a good thing. It can protect us from believing things that aren’t true. But being skeptical is very different than being cynical. Cynicism is an attitude that distrusts the motives of others. It’s a negative outlook on life and relationships that makes it difficult to believe in anything. While curious skepticism […]

Church hurt can come in many different shapes and sizes. Systemic problems and unethical leaders cause some church hurts. These hurts run deep and are highly damaging. But some church hurts are caused by people who unintentionally say or do things that cause pain without even realizing it. And while a sexual abuse scandal is […]

Church hurt isn’t only caused by the actions of other people. Sometimes it’s caused by religious structures. Sometimes the systems and rules of religion enable attitudes and behaviors that hurt people. Church hurt can come in many forms, but what do we do when the causes are built into our religious institutions? JOHN 8:1-11

There is a reality Christians need to face: People have been deeply hurt by the church. The stories of people who have been hurt by the church and its leaders have been bubbling to the surface for years into what now seems like an unstoppable flood. There are those who have been damaged by abusive […]

The Bible is an ancient document that followers of Jesus use as a guide for living and knowing God. But as time has progressed modern advancements in science and culture have challenged how it is interpreted. This has created tension between what Christians believe and how we understand new information about the world. The Bible […]