Those moments of hugs and happy tears and celebration are not the end of the story. Yes, reunions are almost always joyful, but the day-to-day and week-to-week reintegration… is often rather different, and just-as-often kept quiet.
Deployment Lesson for COVID #8: Get your affairs in order
If you just read that and thought, "Oh, that doesn't apply to me"... it does.
Deployment Lesson for COVID #6: Physically-distanced relationships
This one's rough. It's hard. There are no two ways about it.
Not Who We Were: on breaking down theology, rebuilding faith… and staying married
Have you ever found yourself questioning the things you were always taught? Maybe the things you were told about alcohol or modesty started to fall apart, maybe a tragedy forced you to reconsider how much God really is in control, maybe you started to see some contradictions in the Bible and wondered if it’s still... Continue Reading →
Faith at Home, Part 1: Talking about Worship
In this Faith at Home series, I will be sharing some of the ways Jonathan and I have intentionally parented our kids (currently ages 7, 9, and 11) in a way that centers our Christian faith and faith-based values. My philosophy of pastoring and parenting is “That church would be an integral part of the... Continue Reading →
Decoding Discrimination (or: How to Discover What Your Church Really Believes)
I’ve spent my life in church. I’m a bit of a church nerd, actually. I love business meetings and conferences; ecclesiastical conversations are my FAVORITE conversations; and, well, I use words like “ecclesiastical” on a regular basis (ecclesiastical = churchy stuff). I care deeply about church — and I care deeply about churches being honest.... Continue Reading →
Egalitarian Marriage: The Myths
Last fall, knowing we were coming up on a decade of marriage, Jon and I decided to read a book together about relationships. We did this a lot when we were first married and hadn't in several years, and we're both firm believers in taking time to strengthen your relationship even when it doesn't "need"... Continue Reading →