Small Group Leaders: This Is Different
If you’ve been a small group leader, or a part of a small group, you know that they sometimes can be sort of hit-and-miss. When it comes to to small group curriculum, some are engaging and inspiring. Others leave something to be desired. What makes Joy Starts Here different from other small group studies your […]
Two Necessities of Life You Might Not Know About
If you randomly asked most people what the basic necessities were in life you’d probably get answers like food, water, and shelter. You also might get a few answers for other things like love and companionship. All of those answers are right. But there are two more things we need in life that most people don’t […]
Video: How Thrive Completely Changed One Life
After attending Thrive people ask Barb “Where did you go and what did you do?” Watch this video to find out just how much it could change your life! Register Today for Thrive
"We Want to Bring Joy to Our Church"
Conrad Beaulieu volunteers with Life Model Works to help manage our marketing. When we asked the volunteers and staff of Life Model Works why they will be at the 2015 Annual Gathering, here’s what he said: Sharing Joy and the Immanuel Approach are a revolutionary and effective means to change ourselves and the culture of […]
How a New Identity Can Help Others
The other day three members of the Life Model Works team were talking when an interesting idea came up. One of our key volunteers, Conrad, was talking about how he and his wife Lori come alongside struggling families. They work together to teach them using Life Model principles like those we train at Thrive until […]
Two Resources to Keep Christmas from Stealing Your Joy
Let’s be honest: Not everyone is looking forward to Christmas. We’ve got two great audio resources to help you get through the holidays. Attachment Pain and the Holidays: Shalom for the Season It’s hard to face the Christmas and holiday season when relationships hurt. This time of year just seems to amplify the kinds of relational […]
Discover How to End Quiet Desperation
“The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.” – Henry David Thoreau “I’ve come that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” – Jesus For many, Thoreau’s “desperation” strikes close to home. Desperation has many sources. Abuse. Neglect. A broken heart. Sometimes, desperation comes from a craving. There is dangerous comfort found in unhealthy substances, […]
What does the Bible Really Teach About Healing?
Trying to answer questions about emotions and “emotional healing” always reminds me of the carnival/arcade game, “Whack-a-Mole.” Those Pesky Emotions In Whack-a-Mole, the player stands with a large foam “whacker” in hand and faces a flat surface with a series of holes in it. The object of the game is to “whack” a mole on […]
Teachers: Create a Classroom Where Students Feel Like they Belong
Based on Richard Sagor’s article Lessons From Skateboarders, students generated Thinking Maps about how they can experience Competency, Belonging, Usefulness, Potency, and Optimism (CBUPO) inside our classroom. Sagor asked, “What encourages humans to invest in difficult undertakings?” He discovered that everyone needs CBUPO in order to be motivated to do what’s hard. School is hard, so both students and […]
Three Chances to Hear Ed Khouri on the Radio!
You can hear Ed Khouri, co-author of Joy Starts Here on an upcoming episode of Beyond Abuse Radio. Ed will introduce many of the ideas from Joy Starts Here. He will also provide a framework for some of the concepts in Connexus, the Life Model Approach for Churches. Here’s the description of the 1st episode which you […]
Tired of Cliché Christian Happiness? Try this Instead
My crabby self is beginning to be won over. A little background. I don’t put stock in “easy answers.” I strive for authenticity and any hint of that plastic sort of happy-face Christianity –well, I have to work at loving a person who espouses that. I don’t like sugar-coating things, or even coming close to […]
Transform Your Classroom by Creating Belonging
I teach 216 students each day! I know! It’s virtually an impossible task! The public school system is just set up this way, and it has never made any sense to me. As a result, it’s easy to become overwhelmed and never learn all those kiddos’ names. In order to create any sense of real BELONGING in […]
The Problem with Healing
One of the quickest ways to start a theological argument is to start throwing around the words, “Inner Healing,” or “emotional healing.” Like a group of grizzly bears with fresh meat, heresy hunters, those self-appointed internet guardians of all things Christian, will rip the term – and the unwary feeder – apart. Name calling, personal and […]
Here’s How Joy Radically Altered One Woman’s Life
There’s nothing more exciting than watching God transform lives. Sometimes, the changes we get to see are very visible. One recent example is our friend Deborah. Five years ago, she was depressed, overweight and estranged from her mother. Then, Deborah participated in Connexus, a series of three transformative courses for churches. Connexus In Connexus: Restarting, […]
What Will It Take to Become a Church for the Depressed?
The following article was originally published on ChrisMorton.info. Take a look at Connexus to learn how your church can embrace the depressed and others in need. The sting of Robin Williams’ death strikes in a sore place in the cultural subconscious next to the memories of Phillip Seymore Hoffman and Mitch Hedberg. All death is tragic. Suicide […]
How to Get Joy Started in the Classroom
Many teachers begin the first day of school by presenting their syllabus and classroom rules. I start with JOY! This year I brought in 6 rolls of toilet paper, one roll for each table group. My instructions were simple: take as much as you need. Fortunately, my students had not encountered this particular “ice breaker” […]
This is how your brain activates creativity and helps you live like Jesus
Our brain works best when synchronized. The executive system of the brain regulates our emotions and keeps us connected with other people. We calm our emotions and repair ruptures. We focus on what is important and shift our attention as necessary. We control our cravings and quiet our impulses. We stay proactive to complete commitments […]
Want Sustained Joy? Become a better mind reader.
Are you looking for mutually satisfying relationships and sustained joy? Learn to read minds. At Life Model Works, we call this the “Level 3 of the control center.” It is what helps us synchronize energy levels with other people, read their body language, and gauge their well being on a moment-by-moment basis. The result is, we feel […]
Five Tips for Being Approachable
Sometime interactions are easy. Sometimes they are a lot of work. What’s the difference? To experience sustained joy, we need relationships that feel safe, stay open and connected. One way to describe this process is “engaging the approach system.” What exactly does that mean? Well, it helps to know a little about the brain. At Life Model […]
The Secret To Becoming a Great Father No Matter Where You Came From
Father’s Day comes with mixed feelings. Some are thrilled to celebrate how their Dad loved them and who he shaped them to be. Others still have wounds from difficult or even dangerous relationships with their fathers. The good news is that both scripture and science promise that anyone can learn to be a great dad! Overcomer […]