Don Follis | Being emotionally present helps one do right thing
When I present seminars on emotional health, I tell a story from Luke chapter 7 (verses 36-50), where I think Jesus shows remarkable self-awareness. Jesus was invited to a dinner party hosted by one of...
View ArticleDon Follis | On defying one's family to earn a Ph.D. from Cambridge
After I finished Tara Westover's memoir "Educated" (Random House, New York, 2018), I saw the book made President Barack Obama's summer reading list, too. He wrote on his Facebook page on Aug.read more
View ArticleDon Follis | The truly faithful have nothing to fear
President Donald Trump hosted a White House dinner for 100 evangelical leaders in late August. When the President entertained the church leaders aligned with his Republican base, I thought back to a...
View ArticleDon Follis | We vote, but Jesus alone ushers in his kingdom
My work is a good fit for me, as I spend my days interacting with pastors from a wide array of backgrounds. As I counsel, give spiritual direction, ask questions and listen to stories — some...
View ArticleDon Follis | A mentor for pastors
No pastor has influenced me more than the Rev. Eugene Peterson, a Presbyterian clergyman, author and scholar. He died at age 85 on Oct. 22 at his Lakeside, Mont., home. Along with writing more than 20...
View ArticleDon Follis | During Advent, God's word calls for changes
My imagination was greatly expanded one Advent season when I heard a recorded sermon from the late 1950s given by the Rev. Gardner Calvin Taylor (1918-2015), a noted African-American Baptist preacher...
View ArticleDon Follis | Prayers for 2019 brimming with life
As Jan. 1 approached, I was talking with a man about setting goals for the new year. I told him I don't normally make New Year's Resolutions. When our faith came up, he told me he is a Catholic and...
View ArticleDon Follis | Treating others with empathy, respect is our only hope
With the drums already beating for the next presidential election, a pastor told me the other day he really fears the next two years. When he asked me what I thought he should do to confront his fears...
View ArticleDon Follis | A reminder that we're all a wondrous mix of dust, divinity
At 6:50 a.m. on Ash Wednesday, I walked into St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Urbana and sat down amid the faithful already beginning to gather for the 7 a.m. Mass. I greeted a neighbor. I smiled at...
View ArticleDon Follis | A week to resist labeling others' sins
During Lent, I have tried to give God time to search my heart. I have seen my own sins — both overt and covert — that require God's forgiveness and grace.One of my go-tos, if I am honest, is wrapping...
View ArticleDon Follis | Call of God centers on our love of God and neighbor
The May 8 edition of "Christian Century" magazine features a dozen short essays by people, mostly clergy, responding to a one-word writing prompt given to readers by the editors: "Call." The articles...
View ArticleDon Follis | The evil of addiction is never satisfied
My heart sunk when Austin Eubanks died on May 18. Eubanks, 37, was a recovering drug addict who been clean for seven years. Among the many mysterious and puzzling aspects of addiction is that there are...
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