Prayers and Blessings

Praying a Prayer of Peace for Today

2020-10-15T05:19:09+00:00By Joel|discipleship, francis of assisi, Kingdom of God, Prayers and Blessings, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation, trust|

I remember when I first learned of Francis of Assisi. I was a student at a Lutheran university when the choir that I was in sang a piece that was an arrangement of the words from the Franciscan attributed "Prayer of Peace." Eventually through research I found that there is no evidence that Francis himself wrote the prayer, nevertheless I was captivated by the story of Francis (he did, after all, personify that prayer). It radically impacted my heart. Having been to a third world country out of high school, I returned to the U.S. unsatisfied by what the U.S. culture offered in empty promises and visions of material dreams. And it was not whether it [...]

In The Storm: What Do You Say? [Audio]

2019-07-26T00:30:20+00:00By Joel|A Prelude To Tomorrow, Music, Prayers and Blessings, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation|

"Going through a storm doesn't mean that we're just waiting for it to go away, but as followers of Jesus, it is looking for Jesus in the storm. And saying, 'I think I see Jesus [on the water], and if that's Jesus, I would rather be with Him, out there in this mess, than in this boat relying on my own ingenuity and resources.' Even though we might be afraid and fearful, He is inviting us into a deeper experience of trust in Him." - my sermon, "This is My Story: In the Storm" For most of my songs, I can recall the moments when I wrote, scribbled, labored, or arm wrestled the lyrics and melodies [...]

Prayer Drawing

2019-05-17T00:37:17+00:00By Joel|prayer, Prayers and Blessings, Spiritual Disciplines, Spiritual Formation|

Recently, I've been doing a meaningful practice with my family that I've been calling "Prayer Drawing." It originally came from a conversation that I had with Steve Macchia (the author of Crafting a Rule of Life) at a conference. The first time we tried it we did it to the song "Good Shepherd" by Fernando Ortega, and our girls loved it. Lately, we've had the opportunity to experiment with this on a regular basis. In a sense, what we do is kind of Lectio Divina-esque. Lectio Divina (from the Latin: divine reading) is a prayer practice where you are reading Scripture for the purpose of transformation (as opposed to information), and from the place of prayer you are [...]

Living Deeply

2019-05-17T00:30:19+00:00By Joel|Missional Living, Prayers and Blessings, Simplicity, Spiritual Formation|

"My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn or deserve it." Brennan Manning It is once again the end of a year, and as we get ready for the next, there always seems to be the inherent introspection. There may be anticipation, maybe regret, anxiety, or hopefully, gratitude, as many are looking back, as well as forward. At best, there is a sense of hope. One thing I do every November/December is listen for what the Lord might be saying to me as I enter into the New Year. While it is often just a whisper, and often unclear, it's a starting point [...]