Where's the Good Stuff this week?
Friday 5/8/26 roundup of what I've discovered on Substack
‘Good Stuff’ = articles I’ve read this week that inspired, educated, entertained, or moved me.
Which for a Free Range Priest, means reading more amazing, inspiring things about God, the church, the universe, and running.
Here’s this week’s roundup:
God stuff
‘Why I’m a Christian, Not a Stoic.’ by Griffin Gooch. ‘Even when Jesus’ emotions were inconvenient, He didn’t dance around them. His “familiarity with sorrow” attests that experiencing emotion with utmost sincerity isn’t a burden, but an invitation into a textured, paradoxical, abundant life. The good life is upside down.’
"You Are..." by Diane Roth. ‘Last week, you were sheep. This week, You are .... stones, plain old stones. Plain old stones, but the house of God. Plain old stones, but mementos of God’s presence in the wilderness. Plain old stones, but being built into a spiritual house. But not without some rock-tumbling, and some grit.
Church stuff
‘On the Complexity of Evaluating Cultural Christianity‘ by Casey McCall. ‘The question of how is too often neglected in these debates. It’s one thing to want culture to reflect Christian values; it’s quite another to inch it toward that goal in practice’.
‘The Mainline Church is Running out of Pastors: Part 3’ by Loren Richmond Jr. ‘Because congregational ministry is not primarily about visibility or platform.
It’s about showing up. Week after week. In rooms that no one else sees.’
Other stuff
‘The Joy Series: Old Dogs’ by Joe Posnanski. ‘You might ask: How is this part of the joy series? This seems very sad. And it is sad, but not really, because Westley is not sad. He’s exactly as he’s always been. He’s stretched out right now at my feet, sleeping the sleep of angels, and every now and again, he will look up at me in that familiar way as if to say, ‘Come on, man, you should have finished that writing by now.’’
’The People Who Carry You’ by Julie B. Hughes. ‘Before I made my way to the start line, my family, crew, and pacers all gathered in a circle, and we wrapped our arms around each other. I closed my eyes and bowed my head’.
What I wrote this week:
‘Why using today’s tech is not optional for ministry’. We need to be able to convey to others how important it is to be in relationship with God, and with faith community. We have to be able to connect others directly with what it is we’re sharing before they will ever feel comfortable joining us in-person. We have to build spaces and relationships that are deep and meaningful even when they don’t happen in person.’
’How it Works: What do you gain from spiritual fitness?’ St. Benedict: ‘Your heart will be ‘enlarged’. What felt like ‘roughness and pain’ at the beginning will be transformed into ‘ineffable sweetness of love.’
And finally…
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Thank you for including me!
Thanks for including me :)