Tyler Braun's Blog, page 39

4 Lessons Running a Half-Marathon Taught Me About Writing a Book

A little over a year ago the gun sounded and I headed out on the adventure of running my first long distance race, a half-marathon through the rural hills of Portland, Oregon. Despite hating running long distances in high school and college I have come to appreciate the kind of devotion it takes to prepare the human body for running that far.

12 months ago I signed a contract to write my first book. As someone who had only ever written papers in school and blogs on the internet, I had little i...

Who You Are

“One of the tragedies of our life is that we keep forgetting who we are.” Henri Nouwen

—

At my lowest point I find it easy to summarize my life through my mistakes and my brokenness.

I am a sinner. I am a failure. I can’t do something right.

These are the names I call myself.

Many of us get stuck here—stuck in this cyclical pattern of hating ourselves, hating our choices, and then making more poor choices again, so we can start hating ourselves even more. This is a deadly cycle.

Somehow, at my lowe...

What 5 Years of Blogging Can Teach You

I got to talking with someone about writing and blogging last week and I quickly realized, I’ve now been blogging for 5 years. I started in late September 2007 on this space, before I moved to WordPress, and then I switched once more to this space.

I’m sure there’s one or two of you who remember my Sunday evening posts where I recapped the entire weekend of sports. It didn’t take long for me to figure out that no one cared, though I do wish I could make some money as a sports analyst.

Blogging...

A Better Formula

There’s been an ongoing debate I’ve been watching about whether creativity and content creation can follow a formula. I’ve been mulling over this and finally have an answer.

Earlier this week I got to spend time with a writer/author friend of mine who was speaking at a local college. And during our conversation the answer started to come to me. As my friend spoke on God’s faithfulness I began to consider the overlap between God’s faithfulness and content creation.

We all want to experience God’...

Is Life About You or Others?

A fairly common message in Christian circles today is captured in this statement:

Life is not a story about you.

In principle, I fully agree with this. I am an inherently selfish person who worries first about my own needs and desires, before I think about others.

But here’s the problem…

Life is about you.

Life isn’t about fulfilling your wants and desires but it still is about you. Life is about God entering into your life, transforming your life, and using your life to transform the world around...

The Four Benefits of a Small Church

Before moving earlier this month I had been serving at what most people would consider to be a large church. The weekend attendance of this church was usually around 1,500, sometimes larger. Today I find myself serving at a church where the weekend attendance is closer to 250. Needless to say, this has been a big adjustment.

The stage is smaller. The lights aren’t as bright. I can see all the faces in the seats.

And while most people think of the downside of a smaller church, I’ve already notic...

When the Well Runs Dry

I had this thought last week: “The well is dry.” It was an interesting thought because I was doing all the right things in order to cultivate newness within my thoughts and life, but it was the reality I had run up against. I was running on empty.

Those of you who consider yourselves to be artists can surely relate to the feeling of wanting to create something but having nothing to draw on. It’s a helpless feeling, especially if you’ve been doing the things that typically help stir you toward...

How to Live the Christian Life

I think most of us here know how to become a Christian.

You know that to become a Christian, an encounter with Christ must take place, but so many do not know how to live the Christian life.

Now, first of all, what is a Christian? What does it mean to be a Christian?

Is it a person who is born in a Christian home? No.

I could be born in a garage, but that does not make me an automobile. You can be born in a Christian home and have fine Christian parents, but that does not make you a Christian.

You...

What We’ve Lost Does Not Outweigh What We Can Gain

Several years ago I caught myself in this slow fade where I was exclusively focused on my own pursuit of selfish gain. I worked 65 hours a week seeking after what my boss called “the lifestyle.” At the end of the day what was supposed to keep me motivated was advancing toward this lifestyle.

What began as a motivation to provide for myself and also my wife, turned into a life of sin where I was consumed with making myself happier through money.

What’s this lifestyle? On the surface it’s fast ca...

The First Step Needed

Each of us has wounds from the past. Some show directly on our exterior, others we’ve gotten good at hiding, even hiding them from ourselves so we can try to forget them.

The sad reality is that many of us even have scars from the bride of Christ, the church. I know I do.

I spend a lot of time discussing (both on this blog and in my church ministry context) the importance of deep, meaningful community. I believe that none of us can fully become who God designed us to be without the aid of Chris...