Tag: God
Posted on September 25, 2016
by MJ
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The Jewish New Year is fast approaching. In the Jewish calendar, the month before Rosh Hashanah is called Elul. In Jewish thought and tradition, the month of Elul is considered to be a time when God is “in the field”. He is to be… Continue Reading “Atonement and Forgiveness: Another Perspective”
Category: Faith, forgiveness, God, Judaism, personal development, RedemptionTags: atonement, Elul, Faith, forgiveness, God, healing contemplation, Judaism, making amends, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur
Posted on July 22, 2016
by MJ
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I wrote this post six years ago on this very blog. I woke up this morning and thought that it might be worth re-posting just in case someone needed to read it: It is no secret that the past few weeks have been difficult.… Continue Reading “Living in Color…Again”
Category: Community, encouragement, Evangelical church, Faith, God, HealingTags: encouragement, Faith, God, healing process, restoration, trauma, truth
Posted on April 24, 2016
by MJ
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We are in the middle of celebrating Passover. That means lots of matzo. If you’ve ever eaten matzo, then you’ll notice that it gets on everything. I have crumbs everywhere. It is the perfect food for fairy tales and getting lost in the woods.… Continue Reading “What Matzo Can Teach Us”
Category: Faith, God, Judaism, personal development, RedemptionTags: dialectical tension, encouragement, Faith, God, matzo, Passover, personal empowerment, slavery vs. freedom
Posted on March 10, 2015
by MJ
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Where does resiliency come from? I don’t know. I’ve read that it comes from a sense of being loved. Early in life, if a child senses that they are loved by at least one person, then they will have some kind of resiliency in… Continue Reading “Prayer and Resiliency”
Category: encouragement, Faith, God, Healing, Moving Forward, prayerTags: encouragement, God, personal God, prayer, Psalms, resiliency
Posted on January 11, 2015
by MJ
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What’s it like to read the same story over and over again and know the ending? Children seem to love this. My daughters each had a favorite story that they insisted I read them repeatedly. Each time I read it they were wide-eyed with… Continue Reading “Three Days”
Category: Christianity, encouragement, Faith, God, Healing, Jesus, Moving Forward, RedemptionTags: Christianity, Faith, feeling abandoned, God, grief, healing process, journeying with God, personal God, restoration
Posted on January 10, 2015
by MJ
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I have learned something about getting on with life. There’s no easy way to do it, and there’s no good time to do it. What’s more, there is absolutely no pain-free way to do it either. Hollywood has played a bigger role in our… Continue Reading “Magical Thinking”
Category: abuse in families, Christianity, encouragement, Faith, God, Healing, Moving Forward, relationshipsTags: "happy ever after" mentality, Christianity, encouragement, God, healing process, judgment in the church, magical thinking, personal responsiblity, religion, suffering
Posted on December 22, 2014
by MJ
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We are right in the middle of the holiday season. Hanukkah is here. Christmas Eve is the day after tomorrow. Kwanzaa begins on Friday. These are holidays that involve gathering with communities and families. Because of that, the holiday season can be a much… Continue Reading “The Three Kinds of Forgiveness”
Category: Christianity, encouragement, Faith, forgiveness, God, Healing, Judaism, relationshipsTags: Christianity, encouragement, forgiveness, God, healing process, Judaism, judgment in the church, reconciliation
Posted on September 13, 2014
by MJ
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Somewhere in the annals of this blog I’m sure I’ve posted on the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation. I feel quite certain that most people who know me have heard me yammer on about that, and yet a plethora of Christians and even non-Christians… Continue Reading “A Plea”
Category: abuse in families, Christianity, emotional abuse, Evangelical church, forgiveness, God, Jesus, relationshipsTags: abuse in families, Christianity, encouragement, forgiveness, forgiveness vs. reconciliation, God, judgment in the church, reconciliation, sexual abuse, trauma
Posted on September 12, 2014
by MJ
6 Comments
What I have wanted to discuss is the idea of feeling abandoned by God. I have certainly felt this way. For many people of faith, when something goes wrong in their lives, the first response is, “Why? Why did God let this happen?… Continue Reading “Clicker Training and Formula Faith”
Category: Christianity, dog training, encouragement, Evangelical church, Faith, God, Jesus, loveTags: Christianity, Faith, feeling abandoned by God, formula faith, God, Jesus, judgment in the church, performance-based Christianity, personal God, relational Christianity
Posted on August 14, 2014
by MJ
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Circumstances never wait for us to be ready. Some circumstances happen suddenly, and some, looking back, have been simmering for a long time. It’s not a surprise when they boil over and make a mess. Why do we then feel surprised? Is it denial?… Continue Reading “Self-Validation and Recovery of the Self”