In thinking, tonight, about the art of writing and the writers who inspire me, my thoughts stop at author and friend David James Poissant. His latest book Lake Life will be released next summer, a worthy labor that took him nine years to complete. Nine years. That’s the thought that birthed this post. I still … Continue reading Thoughts on the Art of Writing (and Why My Book isn’t Done Yet)
First things first: Dylan Whittler isn't my real name. For those who have been following this blog for longer than a year, this revelation probably does not shock you. What you do not know, however, is why I chose to write under a pseudonym (translation: pen name). ~ It's not as if I hadn't considered … Continue reading 2 Reasons Why Writing Under a Pen Name is a Good Thing
We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts. A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God I read those words yesterday morning and did little more than agree with them and marvel at the language Tozer uses throughout The Pursuit … Continue reading Closer Than Your Next Breath: How Self-Reliance Spits in the Face of Grace
There are many things in and about Christianity that don’t make sense: the sovereign mandate to kill hundreds of men, women, and children; the outlandish and outrageous commands in the Levitical law; the command the we must forgive others or our own sins won’t be forgiven—as someone who has been in abusive and traumatic situations … Continue reading If I Were to Leave Christianity, This Would be Why…
I’m sitting in my apartment, alone, as rain throws itself hard against my windowpane and I can’t stop crying. Independence comes with a price. I scour Facebook newsfeeds and absentmindedly notice how everyone looks so happy, or sad, nothing in between. The silence is getting to me. I pick up my Kindle and start to … Continue reading Maybe Tomorrow
It starts with a kiss or a touch, always quick, like an accidental brushstroke of painful memories on a virgin canvas. Oops. Did I trigger you with intrusive memories while you were trying to sleep? My bad. Hush, now. Shhh. It’s okay. Just a nightmare. Fine me when you’re awake for the terrible things I … Continue reading The Way Trauma Loves You Back
I just opened up my Bible for the first time in a long time and it landed in Job. My eyes landed on 35:5 which says, “God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things we cannot comprehend.” That is the essence, the nature of God, wrapped up in one verse. It makes me … Continue reading Thoughts on Job and Anti-Intellectualism in Christianity
I wish the Prosperity Gospel was real. I really do. For those who do not know what that is, it is a false theology/belief system within Christian doctrine that says "God wants—and even promises! —health, wealth, happiness, and whatever my heart desires." Of course, the ends to the means is on the part of the … Continue reading I Wish the Prosperity Gospel was Real
