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Killing Idols

Week after week, I sit with people who know what their idols are, but seem incapable of eliminating them. It’s a conversation I have time and time again, and in almost every circumstance there is a principle missing from the discussion. And that principle may be the most important thing we need to know if we’re going to battle with the idols in our lives. [...]

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Meeting and Greeting at Connection Points

There are nearly a dozen early birds who serve at Connection Points on Sunday mornings, greeting and guiding those who are new to Hoboken Grace. One of those enthusiastic members of the Assimilation Team is Jean, who has served on the team for the past several years. The Writing Team recently [...]

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Planning a Wedding the FPU Way

Before we started planning our wedding, we wanted to take time to enjoy our engagement without letting the pressure get to us. Very quickly, though, we started getting questions from friends: Are you going to have an engagement party? Did you pick a date? What kind of venue are you looking for? What is your budget? "Did you know that [...]

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He Never Left Me, Instead He Pursued Me

When I was 6 years old, my sweet mom would gather the four of us kids in our living room each Sunday night. She'd recite the Rosary prayer, otherwise known as 10 “Hail Marys,” preceded by the Lord's Prayer, followed by one “Glory Be To God.” I remember walking away with wonder. Fast-forward [...]

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The Gift of Running

Countless people who attend Hoboken Grace have spent the past year training for marathons, 5Ks and their own personal fitness goals. And while most of them likely got started for the health benefits, many say running's also had an impact on their faith. It's offered lessons about the importance of getting started, building endurance and even [...]

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October Rhythms

Each month we choose one passage on which to meditate for the month. We read this passage every day at a scheduled time and ask God to help us understand it better by allowing it to sift through the lives we lead. Our return to it over and over keeps the truth fresh in our minds as we experience the world around us and allows it to come alive. We seek to [...]

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Production Is Where I Learned…A Lot.

“I want you to pray about apprenticing to become a production team leader.” When Dana first said this to me, my initial response was, “Are you insane?” I had been serving on the Production Team for only about two months. Little did I know, this question was about to change everything I thought I knew and [...]

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Three Budgeting Surprises

Growing up, my friends and I spent a lot of time at the park playing soccer on the open fields. Jackets worked fine for goalposts where there were none, but we could never tell when the ball went out for a throw-in, corner or where the goalkeeper’s area was. Who knew that drawing boundaries for ourselves and adding some rules would actually add to our [...]

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Comic-Con in the Budget?

Recently during a budgeting class for Financial Peace University, we had moved into smaller discussion groups and I found myself sitting next to a bubbly young woman who tried to defend her personal budget choices. She was planning a trip with some friends to the Comic-Con International event in San Diego. This involved a plane ticket, hotel reservations [...]

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Break a Foot

I always loved the expression “Break a Leg,” and being in the entertainment business, it was a good omen. There are definitely hard times when pursuing a career in the arts. The concept of the “struggling artist” brings to mind a quote from Crime and Punishment: “The darker the night, the brighter the stars, the deeper the grief, the closer […]

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Christian Meditation?

I was chatting with a friend recently and apparently threw her for a loop when I brought up Christian meditation. “I thought meditation was that new age hippie stuff that The Beatles stole from India and made it all trendy,” she said. “What do you mean Christian mediation?” After we had a good chuckle, I told her she was right: meditation has [...]

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The Best Nine Weeks We’ve Ever Spent

With Financial Peace University classes in full swing, the Writing Team interviewed Tiffany and Ryan about their own FPU experience. While the couple says they were at first hesitant about the course, it turned out to be one of the best things they ever did. Why did you decide to sign up for FPU? We were asked as dinner group […]

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The Lasting Effect of 1Day

We spend a lot of time talking about 1Day, a day when we come together to complete as many projects as possible around town. It’s true that we serve for only a few hours, but the results last much longer. I had the privilege of leading TRUE Mentors a few years ago when 1Day volunteers helped with a project. A group of smiling people moved [...]

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I Don’t Want To Fight About Money

There are few things I don’t like talking about, but money is definitely one of them. Whether it’s how to split a dinner bill, people asking if I started a 401(k), or even the mention of extravagant travels…it all makes me cringe. I don’t know how to handle it. Or, at least, I didn’t. I grew up in a loving household, but any talk about money always [...]

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