Author Archives: awtraughber

Choices and the Day-to-Day

My favorite quote from a great piece by Kirsten Sanders about Christianity and the nature of everyday life: Discernment doesn’t mean that you are responsible for the result of your own choices. It means that at the end of your … Continue reading →

Posted in Faith, Life in the Fifth Act, The Long Story | Leave a comment

Filling Out the Summer of Superman

The crown jewel of this summer’s cinematic experience (for me, at least) is Superman, which drops July 11.  Now we’re starting to get a better sense of the movies that will (hopefully) fill theater seats in the days around Superman. … Continue reading →

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Good Words from Seth

Seth Godin has had a few resonant posts for me these last couple of weeks that are worth bookmarking and sharing. In this post, he talks about slowing down and speeding up.  The post’s last line: Hurry, but don’t rush. … Continue reading →

Posted in Church, Internet, Organizations and Institutions, Teaching | Leave a comment

A Long January

April may be the cruelest month, but January feels like the longest.  That seems to be the way that some people feel, at least.  Maybe it’s because the end of December is more loosey-goosey and less defined and then the … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, The Long Story | Leave a comment

Sentence Stems for Two Conversations

There are two kinds of sentences that one should hear at church or in relationships with other Christians.  One should be primary, the foundation for everything that could follow.  Unfortunately, the second one has become the actual primary sentence stem, … Continue reading →

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Just As I Am [January 17, 2025]

This past Christmas break was the first one where I felt like all of the “unbundling” of the last few years of work and church could finally be felt.  There was a lightness to things for me, an appropriate size … Continue reading →

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Managing the Stacks

It seems to me that a big part of daily life is a matter of managing the stacks.  Because things pile up.1  Lots of things pile up, which requires a lot of sorting.  But the sorting, however meticulous it is, still … Continue reading →

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Routines, Ruts, and the Groove

Routines are good and necessary things.  At the very least, they can be scaffolding and safeguards.  Without care, though, you can fall into the unfortunate side of a routine: the rut.  The rut is a good thing turned into drudgery. … Continue reading →

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Once More with Resolve

While I don’t think big decisions should be made on little etymological nuances, those nuances are often intriguing.  Case in point: resolve and resolutions. Counselor and author Chip Dodd starts his January newsletter with some thoughts on the terms: Resolution … Continue reading →

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Resolved But Never Solved

I’m sitting in the A-gates area of the Denver International Airport.  I’ve spent the last nine days in Tennessee seeing family and friends, and it was a really good trip.  I learned some time ago that the only way to … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Faith, Holidays, The Long Story, Travel | Leave a comment