by David Hayward | May 15, 2013 | Feelings
Be gentle with yourself. Don’t be so hard on yourself. Actually, I’m talking to me too. I had a few glasses of wine last night and ate some junk food. I woke up this morning disappointed in myself. Last Saturday I ran 10K, then 5K yesterday. I’ve...
by David Hayward | May 14, 2013 | Ideas
Most of you know I left the ministry and the church three years ago. For a long time I could not and would not listen to worship music, read my bible, pray, meditate, or do anything that even remotely reminded me of my previous spiritual practices. I rejected all...
by David Hayward | May 13, 2013 | Spirituality
Our Potluck hangout yesterday with @rachel and @happy was wonderful. It was great talking to these amazing friends of mine about “Spirituality and Love”. Yes, we talked about their love lives! After we spoke, I realized that the bravery of these two women...
by David Hayward | May 11, 2013 | Spirituality
I’ve read that the ancient Buddhists had an interesting meditation practice. They would find a human corpse and meditate before it in order to perceive the meaning of life, to become aware of the endless cycle of suffering, to overcome their fear of death, and...
by David Hayward | May 10, 2013 | Spirituality
When we decide to be spiritually independent and free, at the same time we are deciding to take risks. When we refuse to meet up to other peoples’ expectations for us, then we have to count the costs. One of the risks, one of the costs, is how being independent...
by David Hayward | May 9, 2013 | Feelings
I drew what I hope is a funny cartoon and told some stories this morning on nakedpastor called Call Dexter For a Spatter Analysis. This is one of the stories I told: “I served an older congregation in an old church building. Presbyterian. It was a blistering hot...
by David Hayward | May 8, 2013 | Feelings
Today I drew a cartoon and wrote a post called Garbage for Brains. You might want to take a minute to read it. There’s some fascinating links there to an inspiring and insightful video about advertising and women, as well as the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch...
by David Hayward | May 7, 2013 | Feelings
Take a moment to read my cartoon and post on nakedpastor this morning called “Vows of Silence aren’t Always Holy”. It might be disturbing for you. It might make you sad. It might dredge up memories. It might make you angry. I’m sure it will...
by David Hayward | May 6, 2013 | Feelings
When Lisa and I were in the church friendship was automatic. Friends were handed to you on a silver platter, already packaged and ready to go. Especially as the pastor, everyone in the church is your friend whether you like it or not. When we left the church we had to...
by David Hayward | May 4, 2013 | Feelings
I wrote this for the nakedpastor but I wanted to share it with all of you. I’m a little quiet online this weekend. Here’s my explanation: Lisa and I are celebrating our 33rd wedding anniversary this weekend. We are very proud of our achievement. It has...
by David Hayward | May 3, 2013 | Feelings
Something I hear a lot from people every day is the expression, “This is how I roll”. It actually makes sense. I think it is a good thing to recognize how you roll. How you do things. How you think. How you typically respond. How you feel. How you are. It...
by David Hayward | May 2, 2013 | Spirituality
Our Potluck went really well last night. We talked about “Is It Worth the Risk to be Feminist and Spiritual?”. As usual, we pick up speed as we go along to the point where it always feels like we are shutting down prematurely. What got the discussion...
by David Hayward | May 1, 2013 | Feelings
Many years ago when I had my first spiritual director, she gave me an assignment. She asked me to write what she called my “spiritual history” from as far back as I could remember. That was a very meaningful exercise with surprising results. One of the...
by David Hayward | Apr 30, 2013 | Ideas
When we change our minds, something else has to change too. Let me try to explain: when you change your mind, who is it that says, “I’ve changed my mind”? Freud taught us that we have our Ego, but then we have our Super Ego… that which judges the...
by David Hayward | Apr 29, 2013 | Spirituality
Yesterday’s Potluck was fantastic. If you weren’t there, you can now watch “Can I Be Feminist and Spiritual?”. Even though Amy had center seat, the discussion involved many members of TLS. But I think we’re getting better at this Potluck...
by David Hayward | Apr 27, 2013 | Feelings
One of the things I like about the story of the Garden of Eden is when Adam and Eve hear God walking about the garden in the cool of the day. It reminds me of an old old hymn my mom loves, and which I’ve lead congregations in singing at hundreds of funerals, and...
