James Derkits

Sometimes experts complain about knowing too much about their field of expertise when it becomes a burden. I've heard preachers complain that they have trouble listening to a sermon without analyzing how they might have done it differently. When medical professionals hear conversations among friends or family, they can't help but come up with a diagnosis and wonder about a treatment plan. It can become overwhelming.  The sort of "knowing too much" I'm referring to here, though, is a little different, but can also be overwhelming. Imagine, if you will, living on this island near Texas many years ago, and waiting for a weekly paper to arrive to find out some news from the rest of the world. Can we imagine further back? What if you learned a big weather event had happened only when you and your tribe traveled to trade with a neighboring tribe after a few days' journey on foot. We can only try to imagine what that might have been like because today we have this co...

If you are like me, you love to commune with God in nature. I can't actually remember hearing anyone say, "I really can't connect with God in nature." I remember the first time I heard a church-person affirm that connection with God in nature. I was at Camp Allen, the summer camp I attended as a kid, and one of the priests said that I and my heart leapt with joy to hear that from someone with authority. The Celtic Christian tradition is full of this sort of awareness and teaching. There are little prayers offered that include the majesty and intricacy of God's good creation. Some of the monks used to set out on the sea, allowing it to carry them on to new unknown places to proclaim the gospel.  A friend was talking about the practice of praying morning, noon, and night recently, and referred to that prayer practice as having a Trinitarian Shape. I tend to have a regular morning prayer time, and night prayers under the stars are often my deepest, soulful conversati...

"In what part of your life are you stuck?" That was a favorite question from my therapist upon his first visit with new patients. I visited him for the first time in my first year of ordained ministry when I was struggling to find inspiration; I felt stuck. A mentor recommended that I learn to take care of my mental and spiritual health, and that led to a whole journey that included my one-on-one time with Dr. James Hollis, a regular a facilitated clergy support group, and participation in retreats; each component helped me get unstuck and I still draw on the wisdom I learned across all parts of my life.  Regarding his "stuck" question, Dr. Hollis's confided to me, "Not has someone replied, 'what do you mean?'" Instead they quickly got to work unpacking the "stuck" area of life. At most stages in life, as we navigate worldly demands and familial responsibilities we put some part of who we are on hold. Those untended parts of ourselves...