What Inside Out Can Teach Us About Emotion Regulation
By Claudia Hendricks There are some gems in the first Inside Out* movie that highlight how God designed our brains to help us regulate our emotions and be ourselves amid big changes. Inside Out 1 tells the story of 11-year-old Riley and her emotional reactions as her family relocates from Minnesota to San Francisco for […]
Hosting Your Best Self
Several years ago in college, I had the privilege of reading Dallas Willard’s Spirit of the Disciplines. That book, among other of his works, impacted me deeply. One of Willard’s explanations that caught me was his view on the spiritual quality of hospitality. The spiritual gift of hospitality is commonly described as hosting someone in your […]
Discovering how to escape enemy mode
The struggle is real and happens to me every day. I escaped again this morning. Explaining enemy mode is easy for me; reliably escaping is the work I will be doing with my people every day the rest of my life. Enemy mode enemy mode affects everyone around me, flowing outward in concentric circles from […]
Christmas Peace
We see two important words often during the Christmas holiday: joy and peace. We see them on Christmas cards, and we sing them in songs. At Life Model Works, we talk a lot about the importance of joy in lives. Our brains were designed with joy in mind, and when our joy gets low, life doesn’t work well. However, in this article we are going to focus on the other important word: peace .
“Be Anxious For Nothing…” Became Possible For Me
By Margaret Webb, Life Model Works Board Member As a child I grew up with inadequate secure attachment and then launched myself into animmature, traumatized ‘adulthood’. A life filled with anxiety was inevitable. I had no idea howto obey Phil 4:4-9. Be anxious for nothing was an impossible goal.I remember that at some point in […]
The Green Zone
How can your life become a “green zone”? By Ray Woolridge When I served in the Army deployed in the Middle East, the only “green zone” was near the US Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. It may have been the most protected zone in the city, but green it was not. The “green zones” I think […]
Finding peace in disaster
What disaster are you facing today? We have all been shaken by news of another war and the painful images of displaced people fleeing for their lives. While you may not be facing a disaster today, know this: the time to prepare for disaster is BEFORE it happens. This is true for every human being: […]
How is the Life Model changing our lives?
By Amy Brown and Ray Woolridge “Waking up to hope.” “More transformation than I ever dreamed possible.” “A brand new way to approach spiritual growth.” These are ways I (AMY) have heard the Life Model described. Because the Life Model is such an integral part of my story of freedom after decades of depression, I […]
The Gift
No one knows the thoughts of God except the Holy Spirit Who searches out the heart of God and things hidden within it He comprehends the secret wisdom of the mind of Christ Possessing glory all its own that rulers underpriced But oh the things God has prepared for those who will abide No eye […]
Broadening the Battlefield
My wife and I were reading through Judges this morning about the story of Gideon. I think we sometimes over-glorify certain Bible characters because God used them to accomplish some amazing things in their day to bless God’s people. Despite God visiting and empowering Gideon to defeat the Midianites who were occupying Israel at the time, […]
Presencing
So much of what we actually and deeply learn in life comes from what I like to call presencing. It has to do with the powerful and lasting effects of one living being upon another. We leave indelible impressions upon others that we encounter, and they upon us. This is all the more true of our […]
Secure Attachment and Our Grand Adventure With Christ
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and […]
Our Royal-Priestly Vocation
The garden in Eden was the first temple of our Creator. It was where heaven and earth interfaced without any tension. Our first parents were sacred stewards commissioned to reproduce and expand the wonder, order and beauty of the garden to the whole creation. As Divine image bearers they were the original royal priests. Their […]
To Warm Your Heart
Have you ever felt abandoned by God and others? How about feelings of shame, that you are not worthy of anything good from God or others? While we all have had similar thoughts and/or feelings in our life, we also felt like we couldn’t talk with anyone because no one else has felt that way…this […]
Neighborhood Joy Starters Part 2
Our neighbor’s new boyfriend moved in quietly. Let’s call him, “Brian.” Brian works in construction, and so his schedule and mine are a bit different. I didn’t get a chance to meet him for awhile. Then I finally made his acquaintance. In my prior blog, I didn’t mention that our neighbor has tattoos from neck […]
Why Shame is Good for Us
You ought to be ashamed of yourself! You ought to be ashamed of yourself! I’m serious. It’s good for you. In the right way at the right time, shame is valuable and necessary. It’s true that in the wrong way at the wrong time, shame is toxic. We’re used to hearing about toxic shame. In […]
FAQs About the Life Model – Part 1
Dr. Jim Wilder frequently receives questions about the Life Model. Michael Sullivant, a pastor and proponent of the Life Model, has collaborated with Dr. Wilder to answer some of these frequently asked questions. We present these answers beginning now in this series of Blogs with excitement knowing the potential for transformation into Christ-like character the […]
A Wilder Mission Trip Update – The Last Half
WEDNESDAY IN BERLIN Today our host Martin picked us up in his car and took us to visit some of the ones that have been attending the seminar. One of the ladies that has helped with the interpretation is a pastor’s wife and her husband has been home in the evenings with their little girl. She […]
A Wilder Mission Trip: Update
The effort to bring peace to Syrian refugees and their children has reached the halfway point! Dr. Jim and Kitty Wilder are bringing the good news to three cities in Germany to share the Immanuel prayer process with more than 70 missionaries, lay church ministers, and relief workers. This is an amazing opportunity to […]
Secure Prose
SECURE Heart felt Something It did not understand All the moments Preceding Left a gap Being found As a friend More powerful Than understood Seen As self Not an object Of Desire Simply A treasure Eyes of a child Not a replacement For anyone Or anything Just self Secure Loved Embraced Not asked To do […]