Of Chaos and Order

This weekend we pulled out all the carpet in the house, two rooms and four half-stairs, in preparation for the new carpet installation.

Amie and I enjoyed a relaxed planning session last night.

In Software Development James Somers writes a thoughful piece about the effect that models like ChatGPT are having on his work and perception of future programming.

Having a conversation with ChatGPT 4.0 about setting 2024 goals yielded this article about motivation.

While passing the boy’s bathroom this morning I witnessed a horrifying sight.

Yesterday was well spent for an ebb day.

The ebb and flow of my life can be abrasive, wearing me down like sand upon the smooth stones of the sea shore.

The Order of the Common Life has four rhythms and twelve commitments that comprise their Rule of Life.

Royal has for months now been telling us about his kids.

(intro here) Favor Strategic Work There are two flavors of consultant: the expert and the strategist.

Step 1) Gratitude from me to God Take a moment right now and prayerfully ask the Spirit to help you remember a moment of gratitude.

Thanks to Amie buying “Joyful Journey,” I’ve begun to experiment with interactive gratitude.

In Ephesians 2:10, Paul uses the Greek word poiema, which literally means God’s poetry.

We tend to spend a lot of energy focusing on resolving traumas in the hope that we will be free from the pain trauma brings.

Without interaction, many of us become hardened or indifferent to God altogether.

When we do not expect God to listen to us, we are inadvertently treating the Living God as though He was an idol made by our human hands.

Thought rhyming takes participants through five steps from God’s perspective as God offers attunement to His children.

Relational Circuits Checklist (Are our RCs on or off?)

Our solution to solving problems with our [relational circuits] off is to do the right thing rather than restore relationships.

Amie renewed my New Yorker subscription this week.

On the 13th of September, right before we left for Chicago, Skyler launched this year’s youth ministry at Westminster.

Amie and Amanda (Skyler’s wife) launched their first DBS group last Thursday.

For the first time this year a person joined me on one of my Centennial Trail hikes!

What follows is a thread copied from a lovely Mastodon conversation across the past two days between my account @acbilson, @corbden, and @Shobeck).

There’s a fear which keeps surfacing in my psyche.

We consider great literature those books which honor the ambiguously complex nature of life on earth and give room in our hearts to learn from their wisdom.

I’ve been reflecting on how to communicate my own mortality to my boys.

While visiting the Ellos in Arlington Heights David gave us a word.

(these notes originate from Jeff Mitchell’s presentation at Performance Trust).

I want to read this paper in-depth.

What is it about arriving in Chicago that stirs up so much resistance?

Amie and Royal have horrific poison ivy rashes.

Our September will be packed.

“Write about what interests you.”

[Reynie said] “I see things differently now, and it’s… bothering me, I suppose.”

Amie and I have finished Trenton Lee Stewart’s “The Mysterious Benedict Society” boxed set.

Amie is growing a number of edible plants in pots on our front porch, such as jalapeños.

In Amie’s Present Play cohort (now called Hi Fam!

My dad and Shawna visited the second weekend in July.

For our ninth anniversary Amie and I returned to Skogen Kitchen and, for the first time in our lives, we tried foie gras.

David Ello gave me a recommendation for a new book series, Peter and the Starcatchers.

The first week of July Amie, Graham, Royal and I went on our first ever family camp!

I’ve been at a low ebb with writing for the last month or two.

Another leg of the Centennial Trail complete!

We were delighted to host Jeremy, Bethany, Zeke and Rosie Elston at our home on the 12th!

On this day in 2020 I wrote, How does one stand in a line that wraps the DMV for two hours without growing irritable?

Amie and I went to our first play of the year at Black Hills Playhouse.

This is a personal journal of my hikes along the South Dakota Centennial Trail, but it may also serve as a growing resource for the trail, especially GPS coordinates.

I hiked my first leg of the #CentennialTrail last week!

It’s my sense that many Christians in the United States are confused about our social location.