Karen Bables
Welcome to my blog about living as apprentices of Jesus! I am passionate about spiritual transformation and about helping others become like Jesus for the sake of others.
One of my favorite quotes is: "Whatever job we get and whatever task we are assigned can serve as a container for grace" (Eugene Peterson in "Practical Resurrection"). I pray that the words and sentences on this blog may also serve as "containers of grace" for its readers.
I ordinarily post on Wednesdays and Saturdays and welcome your comments on any post!
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Author Archives: livingasapprentices
From My Reading – August
“The Bible is usually very universal and makes you want to see something—some image to imagine it by. ‘The light shines in the darkness,’ John says, and maybe you see an agonizing burst of light with the darkness folding back like … Continue reading
Posted in Quotes
Tagged Abraham Joshua Heschel, David Steindal-Rast, Frederich Buechner, Kay Lindahl, Rabindranath Tagore, Richard Rohr
1 Comment
From My Reading – July
“Healthy religion is always humble about its own holiness and knowledge. It knows that it does not know. The true biblical notion of faith, which balances knowing with not knowing, is rather rare today, especially among many religious folks who … Continue reading
Posted in Quotes
Tagged Bell Hooks, Henri Nouwen. Christina Baldwin, Ikkyu, Nathan Foster, Richard Rohr, Stanley Hauerwas
Comments Off on From My Reading – July
The Muddiness of our Lives
“Even when we are in the thick muddiness of our pain, despair, and tenderness, we can grow through it as long as we are alive and present enough to bear witness ” (Alex Elle). “Sometimes what people see as darkness … Continue reading
The World Needs our Help
Nearly 60 years ago, I received a letter from my twin cousins who were attending college in Florida. They were very involved with sit-ins in restaurants and “five and dime” stores to encourage management to allow black people to visit … Continue reading
From My Reading – June
“The only people who grow in truth are those who are humble and honest. This is traditional Christian doctrine and is, in effect, the maxim of Alcoholics Anonymous. Without those two qualities—humility and honesty—we just don’t grow. If we try … Continue reading
Posted in Quotes
Tagged Christina Baldwin, Henry Nouwen, Ikkyu, Illia Deo, Isabel Wilkerson, John Wesley, Kent Nerburn
3 Comments
Remembering My Father
This post from the livingasapprentices archives is re-posted in honor of Memorial Day. Do you see what we’ve got? An unshakable kingdom! And do you see how thankful we must be? Not only thankful, but brimming with worship, deeply reverent … Continue reading
Posted in Living as Apprentices
Tagged Captain Rowland Koskamp
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Making a Difference
Last night, after trying to absorb a day filled with the news of a mass shooting attack on an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, I happened on an article in the Autumn, 2021 issue of Plough Quarterly which focuses on … Continue reading
1,000 Posts!
In 2012, I took a class at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan titled Staying Open, Writing as an Act of Faith. As a 70-year-old gray-haired woman, I joined a class of 20-somethings (mostly male) with no little fear and … Continue reading
Posted in My journey
Tagged Christ Memorial Church, Christine Pohl, Western Theological Seminary
9 Comments
Living as Apprentices 