Category Archives: Spiritual life

The Virtue We Wish We Could Do Without

Posted on April 29, 2017 by salooper57

When the Tribune Chronicle stopped carrying Sydney Harris’s column, I abruptly cancelled my subscription. It was my habit to turn first to “Strictly Personal,” and only after that to check out the rest of the paper. Harris’s famous aphorisms and … Continue reading →

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Acquire Inward Peace, Change the World

Posted on April 22, 2017 by salooper57

Before “Wayne’s World” was a movie with Mike Myers and Dana Carvey, it was a Saturday Night Live comedy staple. The sketches were frequently based on some daydream fantasy of the stars – things that did not, and perhaps could … Continue reading →

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Good Friday Service

Posted on April 15, 2017 by salooper57

Below are the messages from the Coldwater Area Ministerial Evening Good Friday Service. I hope it will be an encouragement to you – it was to me! The area pastors are friends an co-workers in the kingdom of God – … Continue reading →

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Get Rid of the Litter in Your Life

Posted on April 8, 2017 by salooper57

My wife and I walked down our country road this week, picking up litter. We took a thirty-gallon trash bag with us on our usual two-mile walk, thinking that we would pick up trash as we went. But we had … Continue reading →

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Shame and Shamelessness in Contemporary Culture

Posted on April 1, 2017 by salooper57

“I feel like a garbage can, full of ugly, nasty things.” That’s how a young woman once described herself to me. She was in her late teens or early twenties, and had been raised with a sexually abusive father until … Continue reading →

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Why Do People Fast During Lent?

Posted on March 12, 2017 by salooper57

The students in our church have begun what they’re calling “Fast Week.” It has nothing to do with how fast they drive their cars or how quickly they can get what they want. Quite the contrary: it’s about their willingness … Continue reading →

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The Dance That Must Be Learned

Posted on February 18, 2017 by salooper57

St. Paul wrote that God “comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” “That’s nice,” I say, but not with much enthusiasm, because deep … Continue reading →

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Faith, and the Complexities of Being Human

Posted on January 21, 2017 by salooper57

According to the Pew Research Center, while “the vast majority of Americans still believe in God … there are strong signs that many are less certain about this belief than in years past.” Pew’s research is dependent upon what is … Continue reading →

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Life Is the Result of a Long Choosing

Posted on January 7, 2017 by salooper57

It used to be common to hear a new convert described as someone who had “got religion.” Occasionally one hears that phrase still. It makes religion sound like a disease. One gets religion like one gets a cold or a … Continue reading →

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An American Brand of DIY Spirituality

Posted on December 3, 2016 by salooper57

For decades pollsters consistently reported that 40 percent of Americans were in church on any given Sunday. But a long-term count of actual attendance in real churches suggests that good Christian people weren’t telling pollsters the truth, and actual church … Continue reading →

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