Comments on: dr. capista on: studying sacred text, together

By: Beary

Beary — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 04:35:44 +0000

I think that a lot of times men find it difficult to break that barrier of comfortability. I’ve had experience with that myself. I go to a Christian school that doesn’t exactly live up to it’s name but me and a couple of my friends are trying to rekindle Jesus’ flame in our school. But before we could even attempt to change our school we needed to change our own lives, but we were very hesitant to talk about the struggles in our lives because of the fear of being “weird” or “different”. But one day, my friend “Jack” and I met together at lunch and started an “accountability partnership”. basically we remain completely open and honest about our struggles and shortcomings and then we help set goals and keep each other accountable. Now, a touchy issue was on the subject of sexual immorality, in plainer terms “masturbation”. We sat down and I couldn’t even seem to get the words out of my mouth but he knew exactly what I was getting at. We were able to talk openly about it from then on and pushed each other to stop this practice. We even gained more members and were able to talk to them about it. Once the barrier was broken and a line of communication was set up, we grew even tighter as friends and even tighter with God. In order to get closer to others you have to go out on a limb, and thats a step few seem to be willing to take

By: Nancy

Nancy — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 04:49:15 +0000

Today I spent the day with some of my fellow staff from Citizens Bank helping build a house for Habitat for Humanity. As we were hauling rebar and plywood and painting and nailing, there were lots of opportunities for talking at new levels. And in every.single.case I had a deepened respect and appreciation for the person. I wonder why we don’t talk at more meaningful levels most of the time? And I wonder: how do I increasingly become someone who is both a ‘safe’ listener, and *perceived* as a safe listener sooner rather than later?

Nancy’s last blog post..Friday Fun 2: this just in – a great quote by Mr. Warren Buffet about swimming naked

By: JohnD

JohnD — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 04:21:43 +0000

Reading this post reminds me how rare it is that men can talk together about things that really matter in their inner lives. There are so many barriers to honesty at that level among men that the closest friends tend to be those made when quite young. Most men have difficulty talking about their feelings because it reveals a vulnerability that men usually only want to share with women. Despite that I have been able to share a lot with other men in the context of special groups – a few friends off on a retreat where there is a clear intention to set aside the normal pressures and relax in a way that makes it easier to talk about spiritual beliefs, among other things. The gospels are a great focus as well. There are so many recent translations by gifted writers, Reynolds Price and Richmond Lattimore are two examples, that it’s easy to connect with the writing as powerful literature. And the simple truths of the unadorned form of Christianity as spoken directly by Christ go right to the heart. It’s a refreshing discovery after experiences of more formalized religious practice that have turned many off from the origins of this great faith. I have found the gospels a powerful occasion for sharing among normally reticent men.

JohnD

JohnD’s last blog post..Shame and Family Violence

By: Evan

Evan — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 22:10:00 +0000

I have had the opportunity to talk about what deeply matters to me.

Usually it is at least listened too. Often responded to at similar depth. Occasionally people don’t/can’t relate to what I’m saying.

What works for me is presenting it as my own experience.

I find that the most ‘unique’ parts of our experience (the parts that are most me) are also the ones that communicate best.

Evan’s last blog post..Less Stress and More Energy from Finishing With the Past. What I have learnt from gestalt #2