In my book, The Longing, I tell the story how chronic tendonitis in my wrists and the resulting depression kicked my butt. That’s right friends… K-I-C-K-E-D-MY-B-U-T-T!
If you’ve gone through difficult, dark periods in your life, you know how pain forces you to ask a number of difficult questions. Throw in a heavy fog of depression, like you’ve got a two-hundred pound Anaconda wrapped around your head, and that makes answering those questions even tougher.
Last Saturday, I went to my niece’s wedding. It was an event our family has eagerly been waiting for all summer long. Kelly Dale, the bride, was gorgeous and Nick Giuni, the groom, looked smashing! The next Monday, though, I attended a funeral. A wedding and a funeral in three days…that’s a whole lot of emotion! Each gathering was filled with beautiful moments, but for different reasons. Allow me to explain…
Last Saturday, the day before Father’s Day, I pulled off one of my best Dad capers. I love surprises and I love to surprise people, so when I discovered late Friday night that U2 had not one, but two shows last weekend at Angel stadium, it was all I could do not to launch into action.
Joseph, my oldest son, who will be fifteen this week is quite a good guitar player who loves U2. He’s also 6’1″ (three inches taller than me), but this post isn’t about jealousy. Anyway, Joseph and I had plans two years ago to go to the U2 concert at the Rose Bowl, but had to cancel because of Joseph’s swine flu (and Bono’s neck surgery). Continue Reading…
This week is CIVA‘s (Christians in Visual Arts) Biennial Conference at Biola University in La Mirada, California, June 16-19. The Grove Center for the Arts & Media, the non-profit ministry I serve, is hosting the Soul Space hospitality area. (Click here for a $50 Friends of The Grove discount.) Please join us for free drinks, snacks, creative projects and a chance to meet other artists from across the United States.
This year’s theme, Matter and Spirit, explores how matter and materiality shape our understanding of both art and faith. Through general sessions, top-notch presenters and workshops, CIVA will present how digital information and the hard and soft technologies that support it are transforming contemporary life. I’m particularly interested in the CIVA conference because… Continue Reading…
I’ve taken a break from blogging for the past several weeks as I have been focused on a film production and other writing projects. Jumping back in, I’d like to offer you this beautiful prayer from Thomas Merton, one of the greatest Christian thinkers of the 20th. century (and one of my favorite writers). I hope you’ll be encouraged and share it with someone in need. Continue Reading…
In his book Practice Resurrection, Eugene Peterson talks about grace and the art of writing. As he read poet William Stafford‘s book on creative writing, Stafford’s analogy of swimming reminded Peterson of God’s grace. This is a beautiful passage for anyone seeking to follow Christ and live a creative life in Him.
…any reasonable person who looks at water [grace], and passes a hand through it, can see that it would not hold a person up…But swimmers [followers of Jesus] know that if they relax on the water [grace] it will prove to be miraculously buoyant; Continue Reading…
One of the most scandalous events leading up to the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Christ is the washing of the disciples feet. Okay, as if it wasn’t enough for the Son of God to die on a cross, but washing feet? Com’on! Isn’t that getting a little personal? A little too intimate? A bit too close?
What sets Jesus apart from any other religious leader is not his death and resurrection (though that is key), but his willingness and humility to wash others feet. Who else does that?!*%
In our modern, shoe-covered society, we don’t really understand the enormity of foot-washing, do we? That is, the caked-on mud, dirt, grime and smell of walking along dusty roads. It was a servant’s job. Not the work of kings, royalty, or a suffering savior.
What was Christ thinking when He washed His friends feet? It’s a story worth exploring this Holy Week…
[dc]I[/dc] would love to be as balanced as this tightrope walker (less the tights!). For me, the idea or myth of a balanced life is a bit elusive. I’m a mere mortal. I get knocked off-center all the time and like a tightrope walker trying to regain his balance, I wobble back and forth hoping there is a net below to catch me when I fall.
What knocks you off-center? Relationship conflicts? Illness? Stress at work? Financial struggles? Worry? Fear? Anxiety? Unmet expectations? Disappointment? Addictions?
Continue Reading…
[dc]L[/dc]ast Sunday, my wife Krista bought a new stamp set labeled, “What I Love Today.” She took a new journal and put the stamp on the cover (see photo) and now the O’Connor family has a brand new “What I Love Today” journal.
That night, we each took turns writing in it and sharing what we loved about our relaxing Sunday.
Have you taken time to think what you love about today? It has a huge influence on who you are and how you do what you do!
[dc]A[/dc]lan Fadling is a friend and the author of the Notes from My Unhurried Journey blog. He has some great things to say about creativity and our relationship with God.
A couple weeks ago, I loved reading his post, Creativity is Unhurried. I asked Alan if he’d like to be a guest blogger here on Art, Life & Faith and he generously agreed. I hope you find his words as encouraging as I did.
Alan writes…
