Memoirs Archives - Joel Bidderman

Home is Calling: South Fork

By Joel|2025-04-05T04:33:02+00:00March 28th, 2025|Home, Memoirs, Nomad Chronicles, Sacred Journey|

I returned home to a sacred place in the region in the Apache Sitgreaves National Forest. It’s a place where in my teens I experienced God in a substantial way. Just a few miles out of the town where I lived, I would often hop on my motorcycle and make my way to the picnic and trailhead area of the South Fork Colorado River that could be reached by driving down a winding road into the park area. Covered by the vegetation of the area, and home to ponderosa pine that made an awning in the little valley there, it seemed that no matter how hot the day was, the shade there would knock the temperature [...]

Still Growing Up To Be a Child

By Joel|2021-03-12T06:40:55+00:00March 12th, 2021|Memoirs, Videos|

A theme in my life that I thought until now was kind of a seasonal thing, was the idea that I would often call: “growing up to be a child.” In Matthew chapter 18 we read a story about the disciples coming to Jesus with the question, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven?” It says that Jesus called a child over into the middle of the conversation and He said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” [...]

Don’t Let Me Forget: The song on the radio in a room called “Remember”

By Joel|2022-06-03T18:04:48+00:00December 31st, 2020|Audio, Memoirs, memories, Nomad Chronicles|

This week I've been pondering, as many have, the end of this year. The spiritual practice of "Remembering" has become a helpful and comfortable place for me over the years. Like broken in jeans, or shoes, or that piece of furniture that has become contoured to your shape over time. I've recently been thinking of a Frederick Buechner book entitled, "A Room Called Remember." The book is introduced and themed around a dream that Buechner had. He had a dream where he was staying in an incredibly euphoric hotel room but when he left it he found that he couldn’t find it again. He went to a front desk to explain his predicament, and the room, [...]

Clinging to God

By Joel|2020-08-02T06:44:10+00:00July 26th, 2020|discipleship, Jesus Christ, Kingdom of God, Memoirs, Spiritual Formation, Story, theology, Videos|

"Knowing God's intentions is what we need to hang on to when there's times of pain and suffering." - Dr. Jim Wilder on Susie Larson Live Recently, I shared a message on the posture of 'clinging to God' at the church where I serve. The topic that we are on is "Recalculating: when plans change." As I thought about this in my own life I have been humbled. From the high desert of the Navajo Nation, to sleeping on couches throughout my late teens and early twenties, I am thankful for all those who opened their hearts and homes to me as a young monk-ish nomad, itinerately walking everywhere. I am in awe of the [...]