American evangelical Christianity hasn’t historically emphasized pilgrimages. It’s a practice as distant from the minds of young Christians as the far-off places that men in shaved heads and sandals visit. But the Ramp somehow felt like a pilgrimage–and I don’t know if anything could have prepared me for what I experienced at that radical ministry in an otherwise unassuming corner of rural Alabama.
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How to Pray Away Fear and Timidity (from my book, Your Will Be Done)
I looked around the restaurant, and my attention was drawn to a South Asian man with a cushioned neck brace. Somehow, I immediately knew that I was to pray for him, and no, it was not from the comfort of my own seat…
Guest Post from Dad: “420 OK Mountain Getaway”
Yesterday was April 20, or 4/20. It almost slipped by me without me realizing this was a day celebrated by many people as a Worldwide Weed Day. As I noted the date on my computer’s calendar, I contemplated the significance of the day. I smiled as I remembered an adventure before the adventure just a […]
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My Story: A Surprise Proposal at the Georgian Terrace Hotel
Cultural expectations these days are tougher to meet than ever. Imagine the pressure on young guys to create a proposal event for their ladies that is at once memorable, thoughtful, and grandiose. Now imagine what it would take to make it a surprise to her. Now… try doing it from 7,800 miles away in the […]
What My Church Never Told Me (Cont.)
In college, I got a group of friends around me that were like me in that they believed in Jesus, but they were different in some surprising ways. They talked about relationship with God in a different way than I’d ever considered. For them, the Christian walk was not so much about getting from spiritual […]
What My Church Never Told Me
Walking to the edge of our theology, the farthest reach of what we understand of God, is like getting waist deep in the ocean that goes on as far as the eye can see. I was raised in a church culture that did not value mystery. In it, the most important thing about life was […]
Me & Joseph (Healing School 6)
One day, maybe even tomorrow, I will be healed and intermittent chronic pain will be simply a memory. Similarly, after a while, Joseph was able to serve as second command of Egypt. It’s a happy ending to the story. But I guarantee it was not an easy one to live. How he chose faith every […]