Who does the work during an apology? The offending person or the offended person? When we are in the wrong, we may think extracting a statement of forgiveness from the offended person is the goal. Then everything is right. I once had someone seek my forgiveness by saying, "If I have ever done anything to harm you, I apologize." That wasn't good enough for me. I felt this person had actually done several harmful things and weren't acknowledging them. Fortunately, when I challenged them, we had...

Sharon Collins combines art and written meditations in her devotional book series, "Becoming His Masterpiece." Collins has an interesting personal story, as she felt called after retirement to take up both art and authorship. God has used both aspects to lead others while helping Collins grow spiritually herself. In this episode, I’ll ask Collins about both her book writing and spiritual journeys. She has a lot to share about how to slow down and listen for God’s voice in a fast-paced...

Why does it feel like people are bad at apologizing to us? Probably for the same reason we're bad at apologizing ourselves. Deep down, none of us want to be seen as a bad person. When we offend or injure someone in some way, we don't want to be thought of as a bad person or to feel like a bad person. So, we try to convince the other person - and ourselves - that our intent was not to harm or offend them. This brings about a terrible apology, frankly. And I've given it myself many times. It's...