Emotional Intelligence Content

How Spiritual Direction Has Changed Me and My Ministry

Jin Rood April 29, 2025

By Jin Rood, World Missions - As my husband, Mark, and I were completing our final year overseas, discerning where God was leading us next, I felt drawn toward a…

Mile Markers of Spiritual Formation

Glenn Balsis April 29, 2025

By Glenn Balsis, TDC - Often I gauge my highway travel by mile markers to help me understand where I am as I drive. For my spiritual journey, I’ve realized…

Dangit, Jo!

Lyndi Lee Markus April 29, 2025

By Lyndi Lee Markus, TDC - “Dangit, Jo!” I exclaimed to my spiritual director. Except I did not use the word dangit. I had come to our session discouraged to…

The Light of Christ

Amanda Torres April 29, 2025

By Amanda Torres, Collegiate - As she struck a match to light the candle for our spiritual direction session, I heard my director say the familiar words she opens with…

Safe Spaces of Silence in Spiritual Direction

Luke Kleveland April 29, 2025

By Luke Kleveland, TDC - Before COVID, I would not have imagined doing spiritual direction with anyone. In fact, if you had asked me about this five years ago, I…

Building Below the Waterline

Howard Baker September 23, 2024

When surveying the landscape and mining the data around what is happening to people in positions of mission and ministry leadership, several trends become apparent. Among them are: While social…

Black and White to Color: Rewiring My Brain for Intimacy

Dave Mead September 23, 2024

“I just wish you could connect with me better, and relate to me at a deeper level,” my wife said. It didn’t sound mad this time—but it was with heartbreaking…

The Beauty of the Gospel in the Matters of the Heart

Laura Johnson September 23, 2024

We see evidence all throughout Scripture that Jesus was deeply concerned with the matters of the heart. When we take a look at the life and ministry of Christ, we…

Riding the Waves of Transition

Serene Chua July 22, 2024

Transitions can be hard, especially those that aren’t expected. But even for the ones we long for, there are still lessons to learn, emotions to sort out and most of…

An Empty Place

Mark Rood July 22, 2024

With our belongings loaded onto a ship for the journey back to the U.S., I find myself sitting among the dust bunnies on the floor of our vacant Tokyo home,…

Transitions and Thresholds

Elizabeth Davies July 22, 2024

As soon as you hear the word transition or change, I’m sure a range of images, experiences, life stages, and emotions occur. As they signal the end of one thing…

Don’t Question the Expert

Jo Newell February 6, 2024

For as far back as I can recall, being right has been important to me. You might say it has formed a significant part of my identity. I can remember…

Embracing Gray Spaces

Lyndi Lee Markus February 6, 2024

“Did you know you have permission to be wrong?” my friend asked me gently. I was in the middle of a discernment process, and heaven seemed silent while anxiety tightened…

Position Mixtapes

Lyndi Lee Markus July 24, 2023

How do we know what we know? How do we determine our position, or what we believe, on various issues? We all combine different sources of knowledge in different ways,…

Gentle and Right

Osaze Murray July 24, 2023

“Why do you want to do this now?” my business partner asked. “it’s not the right time.” I sulked for a moment, then retaliated. “I’ve been doing most of the…

What I Wish I’d Known About Anxiety

Trevor Holder June 22, 2023

For years, and I’m ashamed of this, I was the guy in the room thinking, “Oh man, not another emotional staff mess to deal with.” I was 38 years old…

Unflappable: Flying by Faith in the Face of Fear

Deb Proctor April 28, 2023

“You’re so unflappable,” people tell me sometimes. And I laugh. Every time I choose to use my voice to say something that’s hard, I always have a level of anxiety…