Radical hospitality trumps hate
On Thursday, my friend Jane and I drove to Chicago to welcome a refugee family. Jane’s van was loaded with supplies: linens, towels, pots and pans, dishes, and more—the basics needed to set up home. [...]
Why you should ditch the “kids’ table” this Thanksgiving
In your dim memories of Thanksgivings past, you may remember it: the card table in the kitchen or the family room, possibly set with plastic cups, and a paper tablecloth, where you sat with your [...]
Is hospitality a spiritual gift?
Hey friends! It's been a while, right? Wanted to let you know I'm working on a new book, titled GodSpace: Embracing the Inconvenient Adventure of Intimacy with God. The good people at FaithWords publishers are [...]
What are you passionate about?
What are you passionate about? Have you ever had a conversation, been asked a question, and later, after the conversation was over, thought, “I should have said…I should have asked…” This happens to me. All. [...]
Imago Dei and pronouns
The Imago Dei is a mystery. How is it that we, made of dust, bear the image of God, the imprint of the divine? A mystery we can embrace but not fully explain, theologians have [...]
Darkness that lets us see the light
Part of me did not want to go to church. Another part of me longed for it, in a shaky, hungry sort of way. The hunger won out. At The Practice, the gathering we attend [...]
Disappointment with God: A Lenten Lament
I didn’t expect to usher in Lent feeling angry at God, but that’s how it went down. On Shrove Tuesday, my fervent prayers for a dear friend that I love and walk beside went unanswered. [...]
Be encouraged
Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing--The Apostle Paul, in his letter to believers. (1 Thessalonians 5:11) My mother and I, in a flash of ambition, sort through [...]
Fragile foster kids find a home
Where do the kids who no one wants go? How do foster kids who are "difficult to place" because of their medical challenges find a home? Sometimes, the story of a family captures your imagination [...]
Xenophobia and philoxenia (or, what is biblical hospitality?)
A common critique put on 21st Century Christians is that they are better known for what they are against, than what they are for. I don't think this is true of all Christians--but the criticism [...]