Seminars

One of the things I enjoy most is speaking to various groups about subjects that I personally have found engaging, challenging, and life-giving (see the seminar descriptions below). Group sizes vary from large audiences, where discussion is limited to Q & A at the conclusion, to smaller, more intimate gatherings, which afford the opportunity for more give-and-take. The seminars are usually about an hour long. If you are interested in attending a seminar on one of the topics below (either in person or by conference call) or in inviting me to speak to a group, please contact me so that we can explore the possibilities. 

Cultivating the Habit of Gratitude

Would you like to experience more joy and less anxiety in your day-to-day life? If so, accept the challenge: be intentional about cultivating the habit of gratitude. This seminar explores the benefits of living gratefully and provides simple, practical ways of growing in gratitude.

Listening Well

Listening is fast becoming a lost art. We long to be heard, but too often no one is listening. In our hurried, me-first culture, many conversations are mere competitions–each person is vying for air time. We have forgotten that empathic listening is a gift that offers healing, encouragement, and hope. This seminar offers practical tools that will help you to become a more effective and gracious listener.

The Power of Words

Are you aware that the words you speak every day hold the power of life and death—the power to heal or wound, to create or destroy? This seminar explores practical, biblically-based ways of speaking that will encourage, heal, and build stronger relationships with the people you encounter day to day.

Relief for Overloaded Lives

“Those who are always ‘on the run’ never meet anyone any more, not even themselves.” Robert Banks, The Tyranny of Time. Does this sound like you or someone close to you?  If so, this seminar is for you.  We will explore practical ways of  creating margin by saying ‘no’ to overload.

Prayer: Keeping Company with God

Does prayer feel like foreign territory to you? Do you secretly see prayer as a chore–just one more thing on your ‘should do’ list? What if prayer were instead the relief of friendship with God–simply keeping company with the God who loves you? This is a seminar for beginners, and we are all beginners.      

The Gift of Suffering

What if, instead of shining talent and success, your life is filled with pain and sorrow? Maybe you are facing the loss of a job or the death of someone you love. Maybe you are struggling with a relationship or a divorce or loneliness or illness.   Could it be that these very things, the things we dread most, can be gifts in disguise? Might we find that, when we are unmoored and taken far beyond our comfortable bounds, our soul’s capacity for God and for each other is mysteriously enlarged–that in the prison of suffering we can find freedom from the stifling confines of self? (My book, The Other Side of Grief, may be used or referenced.)

Living Joyfully in the Midst of the Fray

Have you ever wondered why happiness so often seems to be just beyond your reach? And why, if God loves you, life hurts so much? Jesus Himself said that He wants our joy to be full, and scripture promises that ‘in His presence is fullness of joy.’  How then can we live joyfully in the midst of the fray? In this seminar, we explore the secret of an abiding joy that runs deeper than the ebb and flow of our circumstances.

Eliminating Energy Drains

Life is a marathon. We need all the energy we can muster, but every day our long to-do lists act as energy drains. Even when we’re not thinking about undone tasks, they lurk below the surface, causing stress and draining our emotional and mental energy.  By gradually eliminating what drains our energy, we can make space for what is really important. This seminar explores ways in which we can be intentional about reducing clutter, both literally and figuratively, so that we will be better able to honor our top priorities. 

Living without Anxiety

Jesus said, ‘Do not fear.’ Is this an invitation to freedom, or is it simply an attractive but unaffordable luxury in the 21st century? This seminar explores biblical antidotes to the anxieties that burden us.

Intimacy with God: The Transforming Friendship

Amazingly, God desires to be close to us. He woos us, speaks to us, draws us to Him. The Creator of all the stars offers us His friendship. He offers us His rest in exchange for our exhaustion, His love in exchange for our insecurity, and His peace in exchange for our confusion. In this seminar, we will explore ways in which we can say small, daily 'yeses' to God's invitation to deeper intimacy with Him.

Humility: The Heart of Abundant Living

Are you feeling pressured to measure up, to be the best, to live all the ‘how-to’ advice you have accumulated over the years?  If so, chances are you're exhausted. Breathe a sigh of relief as we explore Christ’s invitation to live humbly–as a child, wholly dependent on the Father. Living humbly opens the door to the things our hearts truly desire–love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.       

Love Languages

Do you ever have the sense that the way you are loving someone just isn’t getting through to them? If so, you may be speaking the wrong love language. Be intentional about loving the people in your life. Roll up your sleeves for a fun, practical, hands-on exploration of Gary Chapman’s five languages of love: encouraging words, quality time, touch, gift giving and acts of service.