300 words a day

Journaling prayer, David style.

The other year, Meg wondered about journaling prayer. I think it’s a great question. I think that sometimes, David prayed with a pen. The book of Psalms includes some of those prayers. They reflect honesty and vulnerability. They aren’t pretty or polite. But neither is good conversation. 1. With a loud frustrated voice. I cry aloud […]

by Jon Swanson

A parable, perhaps, about conversation with God.

The other day, I had this image of our daughter Hope calling our son Andrew. She says, “I need some tips on talking with Dad. Like ‘5 easy ways to get dad to do what you want’ or something.” Andrew says, “I don’t understand talking with Dad at all. Sometimes I ask for something and […]

by Jon Swanson

A prayer for the Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

God. We want you to tell us what to do. We want it as clear as a contract. If we do this, you will do that. If we eat this and abstain from that, you will do what we ask. If we vote this way or support that one, you will make us great. If […]

by Jon Swanson

I wait in expectation.

“In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice.In the morning, I lay my requests before you, Lord, and wait in expectation.” We all have situations we care about that we cannot care for. Our hearts break as this friend shares about a family crisis and that friend shares about a personal struggle and the […]

by Jon Swanson

Encountering roadblocks can have value.

A roadblock is an event or object that makes us stop moving. A tree that has fallen across the road can be a literal roadblock. So can the sarcastic comment that interrupts our train of thought, the clogged drain in the tub, and the paperwork that we didn’t expect which has to be completed by […]