Blog
Breaking Point
1/18/2022 by Matt LewellynWe all have our particular breaking points, where we feel like we don't have the tools to go on doing the things we have to. In the evangelical world, if there's one class of people we've assumed is immune from all of this, it's the clergy. Such an expectation brings pressure on the soul.
Depending on the make-up of the minister's psyche, that pressure will either be in balance with general countenance, or it will shove a pastor to a darker, more foggy path.
Sheep and Wolves: A Parable
1/1/2022 by Matt LewellynJoe was a great sheepdog. He had spent several seasons now, rounding up the flock from the grazing fields, showing the sheep where the best grass was, and chasing off predators. He'd been a great sheep too - one who looked to the shepherd for direction and who didn't stray out of the pasture, as some of the sheep did.
Every once in a while, Joe noticed that one of the sheepdogs got too rough with the sheep and turned into something more sinister. He'd seen that kind of animal before - but it was usually one that the sheepdogs chased away. A wolf.
Out of Phase
12/16/2021 by Matt LewellynThe church in the West is at risk these days. Risk of not taking life in the fog seriously - risk of dismissing a significant number of people both within and outside of the church.
We're out of phase, for whatever reason. Our light doesn't reach them, their light doesn't reach us.
Problem? Solution!
11/29/2021 by Matt LewellynThe sins that so easily entangle me are vexing, and seem to clutch with unyielding tentacles. The sins that entangle you - well, I can solve that problem by giving you some simple action steps.
We'll often ignore the double standard there in practice, won't we? Or we can dismiss temptations out of hand as things we're above experiencing. But that doesn't reach into the ways our trials are entwined with our stories, and it doesn't give justice to the created self we ought to be, damaged as it is in the fallenness of sin.
The Saul Dilemma
11/17/2021 by Matt LewellynWe feel like we need someone out there to be closer to God than we are. Our sight is so dim (in our estimation), we want those who seem to see more brightly to describe to us what the light is really like.
In our quest to leave the fog by proxy, we hitch our wagons to the rising stars. And what do we generally look for? Success. Charisma. Toughness. Someone who does not feel the need to apologize for telling the truth.
Tale of Two Mirrors
11/6/2021 by Matt LewellynYou see a mirror in the corner of a room. From a distance, you can tell that the world is a little brighter in that mirror - the positive attributes of life are highlighted. You walk over to that mirror to get a closer look. Suddenly, life's purpose seems clearer, and the mirror practically glows with this energy of synergy with the universe.
Turning around, there's a mirror in the other corner of the room. That one looks... a little less kept. What do you see in that mirror? And honestly - which of the two mirrors are you drawn toward?
Who Needs Help?
11/2/2021 by Matt LewellynThe referees in our minds are constantly throwing flags at us and piling up the penalties. But we also have this other innate feeling that we ought to be competent at life. That we're adults, and we really should already know all the things. We feel like nobody should have to tell us how to relate, how to feel, how to exist.
Outline of Me
10/25/2021 by Matt LewellynEvery one of us, at some point in life, took out a hammer and chisel, and we etched an outline of how we thought and felt about ourselves. We engraved that list in our brains, of "I'm good at this, but I'm really bad at that."
That's how we like to interact with reality. But reality often has a different idea, and it throws a curveball.
Under the Microscope
10/9/2021 by Matt LewellynWe used that microscope and zoomed way in. Somewhere along the line, our eyes darted across the part of us that is relationship. And what we saw there... Well, it's horrifying.
We wondered why we weren't hearing God's voice clearly. We wondered why the joy just wasn't there most of the time. We wondered why, despite our best efforts, we felt like second-class Christians. And now we knew.
Mind the Gap
10/2/2021 by Matt LewellynHow do we bring the “liking gap” to God? Well, it's very easy to submit to confirmation bias in our self-talk. The path of least resistance for those who feel less-than is to function as if God, as glorious as he is, does not have the time of day for us. That his longsuffering allows him to tolerate us, but the material of the relationship between us can never be more than that.