By its very nature, ideology moves us further from people and deeper into "our" ideas of how things are viewed best. It creates a mental framework that often leaves little room for nuance or complexity. Instead, it tends to paint the world in stark black and white and demands clear winners and losers.
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Churches do not change overnight, especially if they carry with them several decades of church history and tradition. Tradition is not easily broken.
But what if we had a fresh start, a blank canvas to try something new?
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In a world marked by differences, the church has an opportunity to be a place of hope, offering embrace and unity to those seeking a sense of belonging. At the heart of this is the profound need for acceptance and inclusion, as individuals yearn to be embraced for who they are without judgment or reservation. The need to belong is hardwired into the life of every person.
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The story of the burning bush in the Bible is not only a contextual story but a metaphor for the universality of everyday sacramentalism. The holy ground mentioned in the cited text was holy when God activated Moses’ awareness of it. Was it really different ground than the ground, say, 30 yards away?
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There’s been a ton of talk recently about what is happening at Asbury University. It’s been called a “revival” by some. It’s been called an “awakening” by others. To be sure, something extraordinary happened. The last thing I want to do is take away from the wonder of what transpired. It is marvelous and has seemingly impacted tons of people.
But, there is a revival going on in our church community (Immanuel Church, Spokane), as well.
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I wrote this piece in November after studying several commentaries' take on a passage of Exodus following Israel's escape from slavery and wandering in the wilderness. this assignment breathed life into me as a black woman FED UP with the pain of racial injustice and silence in the Church about matters that so clearly live close to God's heart for his people…
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Pray for me, will ya?
This blog entry is more or less a public service announcement…
Henri Nouwen once said, "The search for community is a deeply human search and I have felt that the ideal community…
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This summer I read “Emotionally Healthy Spirituality” with Rob and others in our church who are in vocational ministry.
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This last Saturday morning I ran into my friend, Reverend Liv Larsen Andrews, the pastor at Salem Lutheran Church on West Broadway in Spokane.
Read MoreHey Church Family, Allow me to introduce to you two new members of our staff at Immanuel.
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After listening to a sermon on Hope, one phrase eddied within me: "a living hope." The emphasis was that this living hope was alive, "breathed…
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I learned something new this year during the Martin Luther King, Jr (MLK) observance: his views on racial and economic equality were not widely embraced by either the white or black church.
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I have been working at Cup of Cool Water for more than 4 years. In that time I have worked with hundreds if not thousands of at risk youth. It is interesting how certain words or phrases can become so common that we can easily disconnect ourselves from…
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When I was in 6th grade my small group leader at the time took me to Barnes and Noble and let me pick out my very first prayer journal. It was red and velvet and felt like the most important thing I owned at the time.
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On a recent road trip, I was listening to a song called “I Am A War Machine,” by an artist known as Sontalk. It was a song I’d listened to before, but as happens often…
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