How Adoption Changed My View of God By Beth Demme If you’ve known me for more than five minutes, you know that my husband and I are parents by adoption. I have some great stories about our adoption journey, some of which would make you roll with laughter and others that would leave you weeping. Adoption brought a lot of …
The Problem With Loving God
The Problem With Loving God By Beth Demme In the Gospel of Matthew, a lawyer (one of my people!) asks Jesus “which commandment is the greatest?” Jesus responds: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment.” (Matthew 22:34-38) Did you …
Bad Borrower?
Am I A Bad Borrower? By Beth Demme When I was in elementary school, maybe third grade, I borrowed a book from the school librarian. Not from the school library (these days known as a “Media Center”), but from the librarian herself, Mrs. Whaley. Every Christmas she read The Cajun Night Before Christmas to us and I L‑O-V-E-D it. I …
Time Traveling Emotions
Time Traveling Emotions By Beth Demme Are you a time traveler? No? Are you sure? Hear me out, because the truth is you might be. Or at least, you might be living like one. I’ve never been good at science (especially the mathy parts) so I have no idea how actual time travel would work, even in theory, but I …
There Is A Big God And It’s Not Me
There Is A Big God And It’s Not Me By Beth Demme I want a GIANT poster that says, “There is a Big God and it’s NOT me.” This is the foundational truth at work in the Bible, from the very first sentence of the very first chapter. (Genesis 1:1) It’s the first of the Ten Commandments God speaks to …
Prayer Is (Still) More Than a Hashtag
This was originally published in July 2016, but in the wake of the mass shooting in Las Vegas, earthquakes in Mexico, violence in Catalonia, and devastation in Puerto Rico, I offer it again. Why Prayer is (Still) More Than a Hashtag By Beth Demme In the wake of recent tragedies, I’ve seen a lot of #Prayfor____. I’ve seen the hashtags criticized, …
God’s Unlimited Plan
You Are On God’s Unlimited Plan By Beth Demme Have you ever run out of something? Maybe your car ran out of gas? Maybe you were baking and you didn’t have that cup of sugar you needed? Perhaps, like my teenage son, you’ve run out of data for your cell phone? It happens. We run out of things. Do you …
Resurrection is Everywhere
Why I Need Resurrection By Beth Demme On a recent Spiritual Retreat, I was walking through the forest and I was struck by how resurrection was everywhere. I associate resurrection with Springtime, but it’s only the end of summer now, just about to edge into fall. Everywhere I looked I saw new life growing out of the old. I saw …
What if the Cross Is Really About Solidarity?
What if the Cross Really Is About Suffering? By Beth Demme Is there an image of Jesus that makes you uncomfortable? I’m thinking in particular about a crucifix I once saw in Nicaragua. It was sculpted and constructed in such a way that I felt I could almost hear Jesus moaning. The way the blood flowed from the nail holes, …
It Is Safe to Let Go
It Is Safe to Let Go By Beth Demme Sacrifice. It’s an unpopular concept. I know it can be a stumbling block for people, even people of faith. I know it has been a stumbling block for me. In the letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul says, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of …