Counseling

How to Talk to Your Children about Sex: When Do I Begin?

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-06-15 /

In our last post, we discussed the crucial precedent to talking to our children about sex: develop our own belief on the subject. Now that we have a foundation, this week we will unpack when to actually begin having these conversations with our children. Is there an optimal time frame that considers our child’s emotional capacity while laying a foundation before…

How to Talk to Your Children about Sex: Know What You Believe

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-06-01 /

Before entering graduate school, I knew that the topic of sex was universally important. However, I failed to acknowledge its relevance in my life as a single Christian. My narrow thinking was shattered as I was asked to develop my personal theology of sex. I wrestled with where to begin in this seemingly complex, and…

Series: How to Talk to Your Children about Sex

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-05-18 /

Over the next couple of months, we will be doing a blog series on how to talk to your children about sex. At a young age, my mother opened up the dialogue with me, which allowed for ongoing discussions on various aspects of sexuality. It also provided a necessary platform for me to better understand God…

Exposing the Darkness

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-05-06 /

“Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody.” -Mark Twain Do you remember that first moment someone you thought so highly of did something awful? The shock of your idol/sibling/parent/best friend doing something you know in your heart to be wrong? For me, one of the earliest instances…

Living in the Tension as a Community

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-04-29 /

“We must learn to regard people less in the light of what they do or omit to do, and more in the light of what they suffer.” -Dietrich Bonhoeffer A few weeks ago, I had one of those moments in life that blatantly reminded me that the world is not black and white. As my…

Learning to Relate Authentically

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-03-18 /

“Accepting the reality of our sinfulness means accepting our authentic self. Judas could not face his shadow; Peter could. The latter befriended the impostor within; the former raged against him.” -Brennan Manning Last week, I wrote about a newer repentance (newer to me…) Looking at repentance relationally gives us a deeper understanding of grace because…

The Paralytic and His Friends

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-01-29 /

“The church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints.” -Tim Keller This week a friend read a devotional in class using the story of the paralytic who was brought to Jesus through a hole in the roof by his friends. It’s a story that’s familiar to all of us and we typically derive…

A Resolution for Community

By Ryan Bailey / 2016-01-08 /

 “Forgiveness is the name of love practiced among people who love poorly. The hard truth is that all people love poorly. We need to forgive and be forgiven every day, every hour increasingly. That is the great work of love among the fellowship of the weak that is the human family.”  -Henri Nouwen A new…

Accountability and Shame

By Ryan Bailey / 2015-08-25 /

“Everybody is identical in their secret unspoken belief that way deep down they are different from everyone else.” David Foster Wallace “Hey, I need you to hold me accountable…” Every week in high school, a small group of guys from my church would meet in the basement of our friend’s house with our youth leader.…