Over the years, many people have expressed to me an intention to simplify their lives. In nearly every case, those intentions appeared to be grounded in either a litany of “shoulds” or a reluctant resignation to making a sacrifice. In my experience, neither impetus is sustainable …
One of the conversations going on in our society is a debate about work-life balance: how to balance one’s work life with the responsibilities of parenting. However, the conversation is happening almost exclusively among women. Men remain largely excluded from the debate …
Four months ago, I wrote an article on young Mennonites that gave me the small thrill of what it might feel like to go viral—at least in the Mennonite world. It showed up on Facebook walls other than my partner Shanda’s. It showed up on friends’ parents’ Facebook walls. It even showed up on a childhood crush’s Facebook wall …
Proverbs provides us with basic instructions for righteous living. They are simple and straight to the point. They help us check ourselves and those around us when we need to make sure our actions are in line with God’s plan for our lives …
John 8:1-11 poses a question about stoning, but there aren’t any real stones in the story. It is easy to imagine that the scribes and Pharisees are clenching stones in their hands when they bring this unnamed woman to Jesus, but the text doesn’t tell us that. Neither does it tell us that, after Jesus’ response, they dropped their stones as they walked away …
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul gives credit to a parent and grandparent of his young mentee. Paul implies that habits of faithfulness can be passed from one generation to the next. Perhaps it’s more than a coincidence that I’m noticing this since Bonnie and I now have two grandchildren of our own …
