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Receptivity and offering: Posture/stance

Lynne Baab • Thursday March 24 2022

Back in 2014, a wonderful Australian friend, Darren Cronshaw, co-wrote a book that I really appreciated. The title is a made-up word, “Sentness,” which refers to John 17:18, Jesus sending us into the world as he was sent. “Sentness” – making the verb “sent” into a state of being – captures a lot about how we live in the world. The subtitle gives further helpful vocabulary: “Six Postures for Missional Christians.” Darren and his co-author, Kim Hammond, want us to think about our posture as Christians – the way we stand in the world, our approach or attitude.

They write, “There are...

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Receptivity and offering: Some options for reframing regrets

Lynne Baab • Friday February 25 2022

I regret that I disciplined my kids too harshly when they were toddlers and preschoolers. That regret has motivated me to be gentle with them as adults. I still grieve that harsh discipline, and I still sometimes feel shame about it, but I can now see that those regrets have made me a better mother of adult sons.

Before I wrote last week’s blog post about reframing regrets, I hadn’t thought about it that way. I have felt ashamed, but I hadn’t realized how deeply my regrets have shaped my behavior in good ways for the past two decades as my sons reached...

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Receptivity and Offering: Preparing for Christmas

Lynne Baab • Wednesday December 22 2021

If you’re like me, the Christmas season will involve some conversations – in person, online, or on the phone – with people who might be challenging. The section I wrote on receptivity for my book on listening seems particularly relevant for holidays:

Being receptive requires a kind of holy curiosity that enables us to wonder what God is doing in a situation before – and after – we arrive. Being receptive helps us slow down a bit and pay attention to what’s already happening in the lives of the people we encounter, their thoughts, feelings, concerns, passions, and desires.

Love motivates us to...

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First post in a new series: Receptivity and offering

Lynne Baab • Friday December 17 2021

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what exactly we offer to God. After all, so much of our relationship with God involves us receiving gifts from God: life, breath, relationships, love, strength, comfort, forgiveness, intimacy with God, and much more. Obviously we are called to offer thanks for all that, but what else do we offer? Our very lives? Yes, of course. However, it is often hard to figure out exactly what that looks like in real life. Maybe the way to do it is to offer parts of ourselves to God at different times. Or maybe we offer our...

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