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Progressive Christian

2013-03-28T14:24:50-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What’s a Christian’s Responsibility re. Equality in Marriage?

Last updated on: March 28, 2013 at 2:24 pm By Susan Cottrell

The Supreme Court is hearing arguments this week for same-sex marriage. This may be the most explosive issue since abortion, if not since slavery. Both sides see their opinions as self-evident; both sides cannot believe the other side is so thickheaded. Christians are certain about what they read in the bible; gays cannot fathom why their choice of a life partner is Christian’s (or the government’s) business. I’m reminded of a story from my childhood. Like most kids, I could... Read more

Christians and gay marriage

supreme court decision

supreme court marriage debate

2013-03-26T08:41:11-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Six-Word Short Story

Last updated on: March 26, 2013 at 8:41 am By Susan Cottrell

Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea moved me profoundly in my college years. The thought of it now evokes the same emotions, though I have not read it in all these years. Mastery is like that. Mastery elevates the ordinary to the extraordinary, creating something beautiful that did not previously exist. Experiencing mastery can make your heart stop, take your breath away, bring a sigh of recognition. I love to watch people in their area of mastery. They... Read more

2013-03-19T15:54:42-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Wildly Unpredictable

Last updated on: March 19, 2013 at 3:54 pm By Susan Cottrell

Animal prints are really big at the moment. They come and go as fashions, and how to put them together varies. But animal prints are naturally beautiful, and perhaps never really out of style. I’m traveling right now, and I had to (HAD to) go to JC Penney’s sale, where I picked up several more tops, shoes and a bag with… animal prints. I can’t help it. I counted 21 animal-print items I had with me, including my suitcase and... Read more

Jesus restores sight to blind

leopard prints

Mark 8:25

Matthew 9:30

Moses guides children of Israel

2013-03-14T13:21:41-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Beauty is Wasted on the Beautiful

Last updated on: March 14, 2013 at 1:21 pm By Susan Cottrell

Have you ever watched a teenaged girl in front of the mirror? She points out a dozen imaginary flaws, invisible to the naked eye, and you just shake your head. She’s beautiful, inside and out, but she’s worried about nothing. Did I mention that women also struggle with imagined imperfection? …and sometimes men? A young child doesn’t hate his body. He will proudly run around naked. Body contempt is learned. From peers, from family, from culture – I don’t know.... Read more

body is a temple of the holy spirit

gratitude for our bodies

how we see ourselves

learned body contempt

self-hatred

self-injury

self-perception

2013-03-12T14:16:25-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Tortured for Faith

Last updated on: March 12, 2013 at 2:16 pm By Susan Cottrell

Please pray for Pastor Saeed Abedini, a U.S. citizen being tortured in prison in Iran for his Christian faith. Click here. ACLJ continues to fight for his freedom, and for the millions of Christians oppressed and displaced by Muslim Brotherhood. I write about this from deepest compassion for victims of abuse and torture. I am also disturbed by the underlying idea of compelling a change of heart. Isn’t someone’s heart by definition beyond the reach of another’s control? Isn’t our... Read more

2013-03-05T14:58:20-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

How Do You Free Your Children’s Heart?

Last updated on: March 5, 2013 at 2:58 pm By Susan Cottrell

From How Not to Lose Your Teen. When I was young, my heart’s desire was to marry somebody wonderful and have children. Parenting was a soft-focus image of brushing my daughters’ long silky hair, enjoying intellectual family dinner conversations, and reading beautiful literature to my children as they lay under blankets by the fire. Once I actually had kids, this was the picture: I explode in anger over a mild inconvenience; I am far more selfish than I thought; and... Read more

Family Support

X Archived Posts

as a man thinks in his heart so is he

from the heart flow the wellsprings of life

God seeks us out

Jesus is about the heart

John 8:11

Matthew 16:1-4; Proverbs 23:7

nothing can thwart God’s plan

Proberbs 4:23

the trappings of church are not the same as relationship with God

2013-03-01T08:16:25-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

You Definitely Won’t Take it With You

Last updated on: March 1, 2013 at 8:16 am By Susan Cottrell

My mother-in-law moved into our house after her cancer diagnosis. I was grateful for the opportunity to serve her and love her and let the kids enjoy her. She was grateful for the company. We moved everything into the large family room off the kitchen where she had privacy, but we were all easily accessible when she needed us. I grew to love her all the more as we enjoyed her last six months together. Many lessons came, including this... Read more

The Real Jesus

X Archived Posts

decluttering

he who dies with the most wins nothing

hoarding

throw out your stuff so your kids don't have to

you can't take it with you

2015-11-07T20:52:15-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Delightful Review of How Not to Lose Your Teen

Last updated on: November 7, 2015 at 8:52 pm By Susan Cottrell

Please enjoy this book review, written and posted on Amazon. Book About Raising Christian Teens (reviewed by a NON-Christian reviewer) [her words] Posted on February 27, 2013 by Linda Thorlakson Who is the Intended Audience for How Not to Lose your Teen: Raising Kids who Love God and You Too? As you may have already guessed from the title, author Susan Cottrell’s intended audience is both Christian and actively engaged in raising kids. What may have eluded you, however, is... Read more

How Not to Lose Your Teen

Insecurity

Parents

raising teens

2013-02-27T15:33:43-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Do You Want to Lose What Weighs You Down?

Last updated on: February 27, 2013 at 3:33 pm By Susan Cottrell

I’ve been decluttering our two-bedroom apartment, and I cannot believe what I have pulled out of that thing! How much can anyone accumulate in a two-bedroom in a year and half? Yet, here it all is! (I say anyone, because my husband does not collect clutter, and what he has he regularly purges.) I always feel lighter and leaner when I declutter, and I virtually never miss a thing! When my single friend in her forties moved, she fit all... Read more

losing what weighs you down

purging belongings

2013-02-26T18:50:58-05:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

At a Buffet, How Do You Know When to Quit Eating?

Last updated on: February 26, 2013 at 6:50 pm By Susan Cottrell

The obvious answer is, “When you’re full.” But do we stop when we’re full? I can easily overeat. I like food, I see it as a treat, and I don’t like denying myself “good things.” In our lives of plenty—when most Americans have enough food even in hard times—how do we know how much is enough? When do we have enough clothes, or shoes, or kitchen gadgets? When have we eaten enough? Surely that is an important question in an... Read more

gentle leading of the Shepherd

gluttony

he makes me lie down in green pastures

how much is enough?

over-eating

Paul and Silas in prison

Philippian jailer

Psalm 23

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