May 18, 2018

Desire: Friend or Foe of Calling?

May 18, 2018/ Carina Alanson

All I remember about the sermon is that the pastor wanted a Winnebago motorhome.

As he talked about how cool it would be to have a giant transportable abode, the pastor’s eyes were bright, his face animated.

But then he started disparaging his desire. I’m not sure of his exact words, but, as I recall, he said something along the lines of how ridiculous his desire was, asking, incredulously, “Why would God want me to have a Winnebago?” and ending with “It will never happen.”…

May 12, 2018

Acceptance, a Key to Your Calling

May 12, 2018/ Carina Alanson

In his book, Let Your Life Speak, writer and teacher Parker Palmer describes how he spent several years working as a community organizer. Though he felt a deep desire to teach, meeting the needs of the inner city seemed the proper path.

But in time, he realized “there was a fundamental misfit between the rough-and-tumble of organizing" and his "overly sensitive nature."…

May 03, 2018

Before You Can Fulfill Your Calling, You Must Believe This One Thing

May 03, 2018/ Carina Alanson

If I asked you to name someone who had a calling on their life, who would you name?

Mother Theresa?

Billy Graham?

Martin Luther King, Jr.?

What about yourself?

I believe every one of us has a unique, individualized calling and purpose for our lives. But before we can fulfill it, we have to first recognize it exists…

March 30, 2018

What I Didn't Realize About Easter

March 30, 2018/ Carina Alanson

As a kid, I had a pretty simplistic view of Easter.

When I was really little, it meant spring time, chocolate cream eggs, and a new dress for church (I remember one dress in particular with a strand of plastic pearls sewn to the collar—it made me feel so pretty and grown up). As I got older, Easter came to mean “Jesus died and rose again so we can go to Heaven.”...