Even if we stay in Christian community, like I did, healing can take years. Sadly, that feeling of not belonging still runs deep in my veins. 

However, the feeling also developed into a blue hot flame like the one that once burned my arm. It now fires in my soul every day.

Souls are weary. But not my four quiet maples lit up like autumn campfires. They stand solid, silent, striking. My trees hold a clever model for caring soul care through connection, rhythm, and rootedness.

A poem about a weekend with old and new friends at a spiritual formation conference in Wichita in 2024.

Art box, Airbnb hastily “cleaned,”

All will be well,

Books backlit in a window, books and more books,

Boundaries, bed bugs, belonging.

Cinnamon brooms,

Coffee in hand-sized cups with sippy lids, chaos-capable,

We all have a soul, and we are both passively and actively formed. 

 We choose how we are spiritually formed moment by moment, even by the pancakes we eat!

Three simple habits I’ve adopted over the past decade that have made it possible to love my real life. These are not cures or catch-alls, but they are Christian-based spiritual practices to practice imperfectly.

When we stop fighting the discipline of rest and create intentional space for it, we begin to crave the gifts it brings.

Guest post by Selene Lau. “You have a fractured bone in your wrist. It will need to be in a cast for about 6 weeks.” I took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. I was not sure I was ready for one more thing. I had slipped and fallen clumsily on a wooden bridge at an outdoor family camp. Now I had to think about functioning without the use of my dominant hand.

Guest post by Nancy Bartelt. When I was a kid, I loved taking the two-hour road trip south across the Wisconsin-Illinois border to visit my grandparents. As soon as we arrived at their house, I’d always be greeted with a warm hug, huge smiles, and curious questions about my life. And—almost every time—the best-mashed potatoes in the world.

Guest post by Andrea Delwiche. What is a more excellent way? Maybe it's partially found in a commitment to embracing a quiet and obscure life.

Practicing spiritual disciplines like prayer, solitude, and unplugging can easily feel like needing to reach a super-high level of holiness or faith, to get it right, or to find that one perfect practice.