Growing Forward Blog

When I was driving to Portland a year ago in the winter, I was checking the road conditions, and it seemed like it was pretty

“What is my reaction when….I find myself losing ground? Is there denial, blame, victim talk, whining, or quitting? Or am I like a real pro

Was watching my son play football today, and my attention was drawn to the officials when they threw a flag and blew their whistle before

I was sitting at a stoplight waiting in the left turn lane. You know the drill. You’ve got a green light but no green arrow,

A few years ago I was hiking alone near Spokane, and I picked up a beautiful pine cone, and God used it to teach me

I was reflecting on my parenting of my 2 kiddos, and my thoughts turned to how God parents me–and all of His children–if we’d just

“Leadership means accepting responsibility for whatever we believe to be the call and the expectation of God upon our lives together…..Offering inspiration and direction to

In I Samuel 16:1, God says to the prophet Samuel after he keeps grieving the loss of God’s blessing on King Saul: “So, how long

4 Types of Friends You Need (from When Men Think Private Thoughts): 1. Ambassadors: walk through life with you..help you enjoy the ride…discovers life…shares laughs..talks

Ever ask yourself, “Why don’t I ever take the time anymore to just horse around?” I get so productive, so serious, so intentional–so often.  I

Get to a quiet place, settle in, seek the Lord, and begin asking yourself these questions to get in touch with your internal noise–in order

Quick self-check on whether you might be suffering from depression lately: Shutting down one’s personal life system Numb to much of what is going on

A prayer for today, based on I Samuel 3:9 (MSG) “Speak, God, I’m Your servant, ready to listen.” 3:18 “He is God. Let Him do whatever

Spiritual Development Actions as a Parent Here’s a short practical list of some of the things I’m doing as a parent to pass the faith

“One of 3 things you can do with feelings: 1.) Ignore them. 2.) Psychologize youself against them/turn them off, or 3). Encourage other emotions that

Ruth 3:9, “Take me under your protecting wing.”  Ruth 3:18, “Sit back and relax…until we find out how things turn out…” (MSG) A prayer for

“A man was not built by his Creator to live as a loser….” Living as a loser? When I think of what losers look like,

“Intimacy is the ability that enables hearts to handshake.”  –Cloud/Townsend When I went through my unwanted divorce several years ago, I did intense work on

“Expect pain to be a regular part of life….. When we resort to protesting and denying pain, we actually are getting into an argument with

“Pray that I learn whatever it is God wants me to learn in this situation….His faith directed him to search for whatever lesson, change, or

This morning I was reminded of a hike I did about 4 years ago, since I was feeling mired down, wondering if I was making

Joshua 24 talks about God’s role in my life: He takes, leads, multiplies, gives, lets us have, sends, hits us hard, leads us out, brings

“When things are the darkest, God shines His light the brightest.” “Sometimes we need a shock to wake us up to the truth.” “God allows

Today I get to go to Ghormley Meadows for a church men’s retreat. I’ve been there many times for retreats and outdoor education as a

“Part of God’s program to make a way for you is to put good people around you who are gifted to help you get where

“Surrounding yourself wiith spiritually-tuned, well-grounded people is the single most important first step….The work of solving the problem is secondary to getting your team together.

“God will do what only He can do, and your job is to do what you can do.” “He is your Shepherd. Life is His

“There are many times and many surprising ways that God shows up and changes even the most hopeless situations…God enters a heart-breaking situation and, by

“When your back is up against a wall and you pray and seek His help, God will make a way through the trial…Just be willing

“When the student is ready, the guru appears.” Teachability. I don’t think it’s actually a word in the dictionary, but boy, is it an essential