It's great when everything rolls along smoothly in your academic work and the rest of your life. But what about those times when it doesn't? Maybe this spring, you're dealing with doubt, struggling with unjust circumstances, or grieving a loss. Or perhaps nothing huge is wrong, but you feel overwhelmed and tired out. ESN has gathered a few of our memorable posts on dealing with difficulties of different kinds. We hope the stories and insights in one or more of these posts will be an encouragement, whatever challenges … [Read more...] about Survival Kit: Challenges in Life and Academia
grief
Devotions: Beatitudes (2) —Joyful Mourning
You're blessed that when truly broken, God gives you what you need the most. – Matthew 5:4 This is the second of a series of nine Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12) in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has been laying down the ethics of an "upside down" kingdom in these short, pithy but profound declarations. Rather than focusing on how we feel or the way we operate our lives, or on our distinctive personalities or preferences, Jesus forces us to go much deeper and much broader at the same time. These are … [Read more...] about Devotions: Beatitudes (2) —Joyful Mourning
Reasons: Why I am a Christian Part 2
Every year, the translator at our pediatric hospital asks this question: What are the four hardest words to translate? He will pause for a moment and then say, Your child is dead. Every time I hear it, I wonder how many times he has had to say that phrase. Every year, I think the tally must be a little higher. Fixed in every medical provider's mind are similar moments of unsettling and stunning grief. Death, crippling injury, and disability rarely happen in the dramatic TV show ways. They are ordinary and … [Read more...] about Reasons: Why I am a Christian Part 2
Evangelicals and Suffering (When God Talks Back)
Last week, in my discussion of what evangelicals can learn about themselves from T.M. Luhrmann's When God Talks Back, I mentioned our approach to suffering. Originally, I wasn't going to write another post on the book, but I wanted to come back to this important topic. Luhrmann discusses suffering in a chapter titled, "Darkness," along with the related issue of feeling distant from God. Early in the chapter, Luhrmann describes the Vineyard's approach in this way: Churches like the Vineyard handle the problem of … [Read more...] about Evangelicals and Suffering (When God Talks Back)