strength and weakness One of my greatest weaknesses is that I believe “I can do it all.” I want to be able to work a full-time job, work over 20 hours at my part-time job, volunteer, host dinners at our place, coordinate events, start student organizations, translate blogs/videos, pursue graduate school full-time, and be a […]

the idol factory “An idol is anything that is central in my life, anything that seems to be essential. Anything by which I live or depend.” D. M. Lloyd-Jones Theologian John Calvin said that the heart is a “perpetual factory of idols.” We are constantly looking for things to worship, and making the good things […]

the cycle of seclusion It’s been a long day. You are exhausted as you pull into your garage and close the door behind you, grateful for a neighborhood that values seclusion as much as you do. Life regularly looks like closed doors and quiet evenings. On Sunday your pastor might mention hospitality. You cringe a […]

Western culture loves its buzzwords, and “balance” is one that’s been circulating for a while. We constantly lament the lack of balance in our lives, search for the right methods to secure it, envy others who seem to have it, celebrate when we manage to feel we’ve achieved it, and even make it the object […]

“New year, new you.” That’s the thought running through a lot of our minds, isn’t it? We watched the calendar roll over to January 1 with big plans to be so much better than last year. But what if last year was one of your hardest, and you’re still just trying to figure out how […]