I have given the idea of an elevator pitch a lot of thought lately — a short, but powerful, pitch that captures the heart of the Message in five minutes or less. But how do you summarize 66 books into five minutes or less? I guess I would start with John 3:16.

Have you been in a situation where your dislike for someone makes it hard to act kindly, leading you to avoid or distance yourself from them? Well, this is something I am struggling with right now. Even as Christians, we sometimes struggle with these feelings.

For the past six years, I’ve struggled with dips into depression and anxiety in my fight against PTSD. In recent months, I’ve felt stronger, happier and healthier. I wondered what has been the most helpful to turning my thinking around – back towards God?

How could it end after that renewing of our commitment to one another? And after we had discovered so many gifts and abilities of our members? To add to the angst is my own personal experience with loss.

It was during one of the most recent pretend conversations that I caught myself hashing out, I experienced a sobering realization enter my mind. As soon as I silently said something inside my head, I realized that what I just thought about a particular person and situation, not only sounded selfish, but was actually also unkind. At that moment, I wondered what these words truly were revealing about my heart?

Recently, at my internship, a lot of people have told me that they see that I could be a team lead and recommended that I apply for a full-time internship with this church. This terrified me – mostly insecurity on my part.... So many doubts went into my head about me not being fit enough to lead, not being able to communicate that well, and wondering if I could handle that much pressure and responsibility.