Whose Voice Are You Listening To? is a powerful guide to recognizing and overcoming the spiritual attacks that threaten your peace, purpose, and faith. Drawing on the wisdom of the Church and her many years of experience in ministry, Colleen Orchanian teaches how to identify spiritual attacks and fight back with the help of God's grace.
Retreat Blessings
I went on retreat at the Augustine Institute in Florissant, Missouri, last weekend. I wasn't excited about going. It was a long ride—ten hours on a bus each way. The topic wasn't a huge draw for me—Biblical Spirituality for the Laity: The Liturgical Year. That didn't sound all that exciting. And I would be gone from early Friday morning until late on Sunday, leaving my husband to take care of the kids all alone while working. Of course, he is perfectly capable of that, but I know it can be exhausting.
The Grand Adventure
I am listening to a podcast series by Dr. Jordan Peterson about wrestling with God. He says that God is the Voice of Adventure, calling us to a grand adventure in life.
Good Soil
Jesus tells a parable about good soil in Matthew 13:1-23. Before that, Matthew writes: "He told them many things in parables." I want to explore some of the many things Jesus teaches in the parable of the good soil.
Spiritual Progress: The Beauty of the Cross
I've been talking about addiction from the perspective of those who love an addict. We might think that the addiction journey is a stumbling block to spiritual progress, but that's not true. More often the cross brings us closer to God than do times of comfort and prosperity. This is reflected in a card I once read. The outside cover said, "We learn the most from our worst experiences." On the inside it read, "That's a stupid system."
Conversations: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
As we journey through the addiction of someone we love, we have lots of conversations. Some of them are great, meaning they leave us or the other person feeling stronger, or they edify in some way, or they give us peace. Some of them are bad because we get sucked into a dysfunctional loop of craziness. Still others are downright ugly, with accusations, name-calling, and language that hurts to the core. I have been in all of those kinds of conversations. And often the bad ones are not solely because of the other person. I come to the conversation with baggage and with communication patterns that aren't healthy.