Blog – Page 15 – Joel Bidderman

The slow death of hurry

I remember the morning, and mornings just like it. Early morning sunlight streamed in the window of the cabin, as the end of my bed started to warm from the first rays of sunlight. Sitting up on the edge of the bed, I hung my feet off the side, letting my feet feel the cool wood floor of the cabin. Shuffling my feet on the ground I made my way to the kitchen of the small cabin, where I put some coffee on, and I stared anxiously as the pot dripped enough for me to pour into a mug. I took my cup outside to the picnic bench in the front yard where I sat, prayed, [...]

2018-01-16T15:20:41+00:00By Joel|Breathe, discipleship, memories, Minimalism, prayer, Rhythms, Simplicity|

For Tomorrow: a reminder to keep on

I love music and spoken word that challenges and teaches. Here's one of my favorite poets, Joel Mckerrow, and his poem, "For Tomorrow." When we were watching this as a family, toward the end, my daughter turned to me and said, "That's Heaven!" and I smiled and said, "Yes it is, honey." The Kingdom of Heaven, a reality that is both now and not-yet, is something that I believe we hunger for. When we long for justice, for hope, and for wrong things made right, the compass of our hearts -as broken and imperfect as they are -point north again. Something stirs in us, and our hearts start to resonate with the heart of God [...]

2018-01-17T22:17:51+00:00By Joel|Create, Jesus Shaped Community, Kingdom of God|

What a Friend: Songs in the Night

So, we were joking: Songs in the Night is actually more like Songs...after the kids go to bed. The original Songs in the Night that I named this musical series after was an all night worship and prayer vigil that I led in my early twenties. And at this time in our lives we don't quite have the stamina for that, but we manage to scurry to the basement for these recordings. For our worship time this month we decided to sing my friend Bruce Goode's song "What a Friend" from our Called as Friends album. You can purchase the song here: itunes. You can also check out that album's website at: www.joelbidderman.com/calledasfriends This song has been [...]

2018-01-17T22:28:19+00:00By Joel|Breathe, Christian Music, Music, Songs in the Night|

Musings on living simply and wandering tendencies

Sometimes when you pray for something to develop within your character, God allows things in your life to form that specific quality in you. You know what I mean, right? You pray for patience and many opportunities to practice patience arise. Whether it's just a renewed and heightened awareness of it, or new situations actually coming up, opportunities seem more available - or maybe you're more ready to receive them. Regardless, I've been praying for more grace and opportunity to simplify life even more, and opportunities are arising. Some people are nesters, and some are nomads, embracing the J.R.R. Tolkien sentiment of "Not all who wander are lost." Truly, some are not lost, but rather they [...]

2018-01-17T22:36:03+00:00By Joel|Abandonment, discipleship, Minimalism, Simplicity|