When I was sixteen going on seventeen, our church youth group learned about the Appalachia Service Project (ASP), a Christian nonprofit ministry focused on the “eradication of substandard housing in Central Appalachia.” Growing up, I was aware that there were families who didn’t have the same standard of living we did, but participating in ASP […]
Tag Archives: spirituality
Weekly Reflections
Maintaining Faith When Your Government Deliberately Lies to Cover-up Crimes Against Children
12
Jul
Jul
For the majority of my life, before my spiritual awakening, I rarely questioned our government. Believing that they would do no harm. Believing that policy was never about the self-interest of the few, but the sole interest of the many. I was wrong; very, very wrong. Just like I was wrong about my faith in […]
05
Jul
Jul
As my years on this planet have accumulated, so has the stuff I’ve amassed. Even though I’ve made numerous attempts at “downsizing,” my success is always short lived and short of any sense of minimalism. I’m still hanging onto stuff because of my sentimentalism and sense of sacredness for things that remind me of those […]
28
Jun
Jun
I believe that the Bible is God’s story. A story of love and life, grace and generosity, mercy and madness, warning and wisdom, inspiration and insight. Words just as relevant now as they have always been. Stories that lead us to the good life because they lead us to God. Books that have shaped cultures […]
07
Jun
Jun
Like other mixed messages from our culture, we get schizophrenic signs as it relates to love, specifically romantic love. On one hand we’re told to chart our own course and be our own person even if we have to go it alone. Don’t let anyone or even society stop you from pursuing your dreams or […]
12
Apr
Apr
I am a broken man. My spirit shattered and my soul suffering when I began to question everything I was taught in my youth and came to believe as an adult. Like pulling the proverbial loose thread, my whole world would unravel. Collapsing like a house of cards built on sand. Discovering and determining that […]
04
Jan
Jan
It’s late afternoon on NYE 2024. Half the world has already welcomed 2025 with pyrotechnics, paper mâché and prayers. Those of us in the western hemisphere will catch-up shortly; a matter of hours as the earth spins once more around the sun. Marking a new year only because we’ve collectively agreed on this human centric […]
05
Oct
Oct
Judging others is a timeless human pastime. A characteristic that transcends time and terrain. An attribute that easily entraps all people, particularly people of any faith. And each time we judge someone, we diminish ourselves, denigrate others and dishonor God. Throughout any given day, I find myself making judgements about people I know and don’t […]
28
Sep
Sep
A life in service to Babylon and a heart in rebellion to God would ultimately betray Don. As I collected birthday after birthday, I could no longer avoid life’s reality of loss and suffering. Realizing I cannot stop the marching of time. It will trample the young and the old. Don Young and Don old.
21
Sep
Sep
If any person, prophet, priest or preacher tells you that you’re not deserving of God’s love or that God’s grace doesn’t extend to you. They are wrong. Jesus is clear in his proclamation that the kingdom of God calls all people. There’s no exceptions, no asterisks, no legal fine print and no exclusions.
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