This seems to be a recurring theme recently, both inside the classroom and out.  What with guest speakers, early morning devotions, and even now in independent reading on Spring Break, it just keeps coming up. I speak of the passage in John where he quotes Christ,
 ”I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that …

When I was five, I learned how to spell my name. J-A-N-A-E. Janae. I learned it wasn’t “Jenny” or “Jane” or “Janie”. It was Janae. With an E on the end. I learned my middle name was Janna. With two Ns. And I learned that all my siblings had two names that started with Js too.

The funny thing about names is that you don’t know what it’s like to be something else. People …

“There is no reason to supposed that self-consciousness, the recognition of a creature by itself as a “self”, can exist except in contrast with an environment of other selves, that the awareness of Myself stands out. ” -CS Lewis, Problem of Pain

How often do we talk about self-consciousness as if it’s a problem with ourselves? We focus inward and compare and say things about how we aren’t good enough or how we …