Joe

Contrary to resolutions, reformations, and even revolutions, reconstruction is not about fixing yourself. In a society fixated on personal growth and self-improvement, this is a radical and subversive statement. This is even more true in a religious landscape that focuses on sin and what is wrong with us. It is easy to find ourselves constantly bombarded by the message that we are broken and in need of fixing.

[Read more…] about The Fixing Fallacy

What can you do with a haunted past? Almost all of us have regrets. There are those things we wish we did and others we desperately want to undo. Yet as much as we try and leave them in the past and move forward, they always seem to linger. It might be material, lingering in the form of fractured relationships or debts. Sometimes they hang on to our psyche, haunting our thoughts and feelings. Others remain in the form of longings and desires so we find ourselves compelled to do the very things we despise.

[Read more…] about Three Things to Do With Your Haunted Past

Guilt is a good thing. A gift. Something essential if we are going to step into a journey of reconstruction.

Yet it used to terrify me because I did not know what to do with it. So instead of stepping into the gift of guilt, I did everything I could to avoid it. For decades I did this to the detriment of both myself and others.

[Read more…] about The Gift of Guilt

How do you finish this sentence: “You are so …”

I mean that. Pause for a moment and sit with the question.

…

What word or words come to mind? Is there one that resonates with more weight?

Whose voice do you hear saying it? Is it your own, or is it a voice that echos from your past and into this moment?

What weight does it carry as you step into your everyday?

[Read more…] about You Are So …

Which of the R words will you embrace in 2022?

Maybe you kicked it off with a New Year’s Resolution? Perhaps you are thinking more of a personal reformation? Others of you might feel ready for a revolution. But if you are a spiritual misfit who wants to find a healthy abundance, I suggest you consider the possibility of reconstruction. Otherwise, 2022 will just be 2020, too.

Here is why.

[Read more…] about How to Make 2022 More Than 2020, Too

Your story is changing. My story is changing. All of our stories are changing. And not just stories about the size of a fish you caught or the story of your future. It is also the story of your past. It changes in how we tell it, how it shapes us, and what it means moving forward.

[Read more…] about The Story of Your Past Can Change