Let’s be honest ... Sometimes life is just hard. It doesn’t meet expectations, doesn’t measure up — sometimes it just isn’t fair. There are times you can’t help but wonder if God has abandoned you. When you feel like giving up ... how do you not give up?

What would you do for someone who gave it all for you? Who sacrificed literally everything rightfully theirs ... for you? You might argue that justice demands a lot of you ... that you have a lot to pay back. But what if the filter isn’t justice? What if the filter is love? What would that look like?

What’s the difference between where you are and where you want to be? Where you know you’re meant to be? What keeps you from getting from here to there? What would it take to break free from what holds you back? Who would you be?

“I have a dream ...” “Dare to dream ...” “If you can dream it, you can do it ...” “Living the dream ...” “Dream on ...” There are dreams that are fun to entertain, that flit in and out of our minds. But then there are dreams that drive us, wake us up, keep us reaching. How do dreams shape the story of our lives? How should they?

What’s your story? The story of who you are ... of where you are ... of how you came to be right here, right now. Is your story epic or ordinary? Or is every ordinary story epic? What if you could turn the page and know there’s so much more to the story? That your story is an integral part of a much bigger story? Are you in?

Control ... Truly, there’s so little we can control. We can’t control other people, and sometimes we can’t even control our own circumstances. And there are arguably things about ourselves that we feel we can’t even control ... What would it take to make self-control more a part of who we are?

In 1988, George H.W. Bush, during his campaign for the US presidency, memorably called for “a kinder and gentler nation.” Even in Canada, it caught our attention as something so unexpected in a place of power. What about my life? What am I doing to make the world a more gentle place?

There are people in your life who you know will always make you laugh ... People who get your taste in movies or food ... People who know just how to make things fun. But who are the faithful ones — the people you know are there for you through the good and the bad — and what is it about them that makes you trust they’ll always be there?

“Good for you!” “Be good!” “No, thanks — I’m good!” One online dictionary lists more than 40 definitions for the word “good.” It’s one of those words that has become so broad in its meaning that it almost seems to mean nothing. What is true goodness — and what would it look like to pursue more goodness?

Everybody’s got an opinion. And more than ever, everybody’s got a platform from which to express that opinion. Strongly. With confidence. Often anonymously. And often without kindness. What would it look like to temper what we say or do with more kindness? Where does that come from?