I recently read and reviewed Jenell Paris' book, The End of Sexual Identity: Why Sex is Too Important to Define Who We Are for her.meneutics, the Christianity Today women's blog. I've quoted from and linked to the review below, and I hope you'll take the time to read it and ...

I write about prayer a lot (I've included a list of past posts at the end of this one if you want to read more). Enough, in fact, that you might get the erroneous impression that I pray a lot. But in reality my "prayer life" is sporadic, like a car in traffic, sometimes lurching ...

I used to think that communication was all about words. Spoken words. Written words. Whispered words. Shouted words.

Then I had children.

And I began to realize that communication may include words, but more often it entails hugs and tears and sometimes screeches and yawns and ...

My friend Ellen Painter Dollar has a guest post on her blog, Choices that Matter: "Beating on the Chest of God: Christian Responses to Infertility and Suffering." It's a poignant and helpful reflection upon what not to say to someone who is dealing with the pain of infertility ...

A few months ago, Peter discovered an ancient songbook (circa 1960) filled with folk tunes and campfire songs. William was fascinated. We started singing some classics–"Skip to My Lou" and "On Top of Spaghetti" and "The Bear Went Over the Mountain." ...

I know the book is finished when the final deadline rolls around. Which, in this case, is TODAY!

My first deadline for A Good and Perfect Gift was last December. I spent the week after Christmas reading the entire manuscript out loud, listening for words that were repeated too ...

Issues surrounding sexuality make headlines all the time. Same-sex marriage in New York State... Questions about children's sexual identities discussed on Motherlode... And, all too often, Christians condemning these conversations.

My fellow her.meneutics blogger Karen Swallow ...

A friend and reader recently wrote: "Marriage question– Is it offensive and/or helpful in the union to allow your partner alone time, which could be anything from prayer to seeing friends to going out to eat without you?"

Peter and I have a regular date night, during which we ...

From Mark Galli's new book, God Wins, on the nature of asking questions of God (He begins with the contrast between Mary and Zechariah in Luke):

Mary's question is about God. Zechariah's question is about himself.Mary's question assumes God will do something good and great, and ...

The controversy over Rob Bell's new book, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person who Ever Lived is fading, but a new article in the Christian Century ("Betting on a Generous God" by Peter W. Marty) brought it up for me again. I've written before about ...

A few weeks ago, I reviewed Rachel Simon's new novel, The Story of Beautiful Girl. She and I then corresponded via Twitter, and on Wednesday night we had a lovely conversation in which I had the chance to ask her some of the questions that you all suggested. In particular, I ...

When it comes to nature and nurture, the important point is that we choose neither one. We are each constructed from a genetic blueprint, and then born into a world of circumstances that we cannot control in our most-formative years. The complex interactions of genes and environment ...

Penny and William are now sharing a room. We thought we had concocted a plan that would allow for a smooth transition. We let William have a "sleepover" with Penny for a few weekend nights over the course of a month. Everything went well–they lay in their beds and fell asleep ...

A moving story from the LA Times of a South Korean pastor who cares for dozens of abandoned babies with disabilities: "South Korean Pastor Tends Unwanted Flock."

"New Study Implicates Environmental Factors in Autism," from the New York Times. A new study of twins released online ...

For a long time, I thought church should be a place where I could invite my friends who don't believe in Jesus. Actually, I should be more specific. I thought Sunday morning church services should be places where I could invite my friends who don't believe in Jesus. I don't ...