It’s possible to participate in a charade of loving the broken and poor in our ministries while experiencing very little to no self-compassion. These outward expressions of love may last for a while but if there are parts of ourselves... Continue reading

Where and with whom have you felt most welcome? My childhood was filled with instances of warm welcomes. When I’d walk in the door of my grandparents home I remember being drawn in by smiles of acceptance and an invitation... Continue reading

I call out to my experiences and plead they catch up with my soul. My soul? The me that already knows. My flesh? The me yet to be convinced. Continue reading

The writer of Hebrews invites us, "Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore." (Heb 13:13) Continue reading

As a kid I ran from brokenness. Whenever a fight broke out at school while some excitedly gravitated toward it I’d subtely turn tail and literally walk away in the opposite direction. I remember doing this often. Whenever I found... Continue reading

Christ hanging there outstretched cross. Christ hanging here in shame and loss. Christ unproductive just needs a job. Christ no english only a nod. Christ ever thirsting for next drink. Christ turning tricks. Seductive wink. Christ dandelion unsightly lawn. Christ... Continue reading

“If your heart stops, do you want us to try and bring you back?” The disturbing nature of the question sent Poss into momentary flashbacks of all the near death experiences he’d endured. After arriving back to the consciousness of... Continue reading

Blue probably won’t be giving up coffee or chocolate during the upcoming Lenten season. He already has a PHD in connecting with the desolation and alienation of our Lord’s journey. Blue is a Native American. As soon as he was... Continue reading

The writings of Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen continue to bring me such solace and direction. Recently, James Martin in his book, Becoming Who You Are helped me understand why... Here's my paraphrase... 1) The two of them are nearly... Continue reading

My friend, Gary, recently interviewed me for a series of clips to supplement his church's teaching on Moses and the burning bush. PPC - Ryan - Moses 2 from Platt Park Church on Vimeo. Continue reading

I want to live where soul meets body And let the sun wrap its arms around me And bathe my skin in water cool and cleansing And feel, feel what its like to be new Continue reading

In a follow up to the previous post regarding ethics of the empire and the manner in which our culture (us) blindly participates, I want to offer the following video. It's one of the most powerful 20 minutes of hard... Continue reading

This weekend the frigid temps meant the boys couldn’t play outside so in order to burn off some of that relentless energy we landed in a convenient indoor spot, the Cherry Creek Mall. When the stores opened I decided to... Continue reading

At this moment ten years ago I sat down at a small dining room table in our tiny Ft. Wayne apartment to scribble down an essay for a seminary application. A few short months later we’d pack up a yellow... Continue reading

I find that I have so much in common with those who are searching for Bigfoot, Mermaids, and Extra-Terrestrials Continue reading

Before moving out to Denver ten years ago I was a case manager for mentally and physically disabled adults. Throughout the two years invested in that job, I played many board games with my clients. There was one particular individual... Continue reading

More often than I’d like to admit I fantasize about my basketball days. I relive those glorious (and inglorious) moments of high school and even my short college career through ridiculous dreams, which often involve me hitting last second game... Continue reading

These days when a Christian book hits the shelves with new ideas and distinctions, our radar of reality goes up with the significant inquiry, “Are the authors really practitioners or are they simply peddling their product?” In the case of... Continue reading

"Like every human organization the Church is constantly in danger of corruption. As soon as power and wealth come to the Church, manipulation, exploitation, misuse of influence, and outright corruption are not far away. How do we prevent corruption in... Continue reading

This is a story of what it looks like to take up the divine invitation to follow Christ into the tension. Continue reading

“I’ve been holding tension my whole life.” This was a remark that a friend made in our conversation over breakfast this week. The phrase has lodged itself in my mind due to the individual’s credibility as a gay man who also happens to be a committed follower of Jesus. Since coming out twenty years ago, he’s found himself at home in the thick complexity of unresolved tension. Continue reading

In my previous post I wrote of Rene Girard’s theory of Mimetic Desire as a psychological bedrock which may clue us in to the behavioral patterns we observe throughout culture... especially in an election year! I realize my epic cheating... Continue reading

I’d like to tell you that I no longer allow others to influence me like they once did, but I'd be lying. My phone, the hat I'm wearing, and the music I listen to are all a result of this cultural captivity. Of course, it doesn't end with lifestyle or fashion this imitation moves into the realm of religous and political idealogy. We are creatures who copy others of whom we respect as authoratative and right. Continue reading

The West---and America, in particular---are facinated with forms. We like impermanent things, maybe because they can't nail us down to anything solid or lasting, and we float in an ephemeral and transient world of argumentative ideas. It's not bearing a... Continue reading