Signpost Inn

Why I'm optimistic about the election

My American readers are likely feeling sick to their stomachs about the presidential election. Regardless of which side of the aisle you sit on, things are crazy out there! And regardless of who wins, I certainly don’t feel like the chaos and antagonism will simmer down.Nevertheless, I’m optimistic.Or rather, I’m hopeful.Or better, I’m just not that worried… Because the situation just isn’t that serious! May I please try to explain?

Brandon Booth

October 15, 2024

Disentangling from difficult emotions

I was carrying a bag of hornets over my head, and they were angry! But I couldn’t help myself, I just kept poking the bag, until it broke! …Okay, not a literal bag of hornets, but that’s how I describe my experience with anxiety. My head is often full of fearful thoughts and I can’t seem to stop ruminating on them. Making them bigger and bigger, angrier and angrier. Wouldn’t it be nice if I could get some distance from that bag!?

Brandon Booth

August 20, 2024

A sphinx-like, arbitrary force bearing down on us with implacable hostility

As Liv and I are rapidly completing our new book, I’m back this week with another excerpt from my previous book: Changing the Conversation, How to dance instead of fight in everyday conversation.

Brandon Booth

July 2, 2024

People are Complicated

Dear friends, as Liv and I get closer to finishing our new book (we have a hard deadline of July 31st to send it to our copy editor!) I thought it would be fun to do a few posts revisiting my previous book: Changing the Conversation, How to dance instead of fight in everyday conversation. The book was an “apologetics” book, written to support an audience who was excited about doing social and cultural battle, but with a twist. The premise of the book is this: if you argue to win, you’ll lose every time. In other words, if we do social and cultural battle in all our relationships, we’ll end up with a scorched earth. There has to be a different way. A way of clear-headed and deep-hearted compassion. The way of Jesus. That’s what I tried to unpack in the book: a practical way to make real progress in conversations with difficult people about difficult issues. Today I want to share an excerpt with you. It’s from the chapter titled: “People are Complicated.”

Brandon Booth

June 24, 2024

Attention: A Compassionate Diagnosis

The topic of attention has been running circles in my mind for the past few months. My interest is quite personal. You see, I regularly experience the brevity of my attention span and my proclivity for distraction. I also seem to have spread the malady around because many of my friends and family mention a similar struggle.

Peter Gammell

May 14, 2024

Processing emotions means movement

Emotions are physical sensations, they activate and agitate our bodies. They are geared toward movement—toward action. Even before I consciously feel an emotion, my body is aware of it and is either preparing for action, or already moving in response.

Brandon Booth

February 12, 2024

Attending to God in the ordinary

What does it mean to attend to the presence of God? What exactly am I attending to? Oftentimes we'd like God's work in our life to be special and flashy. But God delights to work through ordinary means. We want to cultivate a growing trust that God is forming us through mundane means, every single day. What God asks of us is to be present and to live in reality.

Brandon Booth

June 29, 2023

You are not a project

You are not a project! You're you! This is a core idea for Signpost Inn Ministries. You're not a thing to be fixed, not a thing to be constructed or built. You're not a project, you're you! You're a person to be loved, to be respected, to be enjoyed, to be supported. You are complex and you are unique. We want to be a space where you can experience other human beings that are not using you to make themselves feel valuable. We are a space where you're valuable. That's it. And we're happy you're here.

Brandon Booth

May 31, 2023

This is why we exist

Signpost Inn Ministries is a passion for connection. We are an open door. We are a table spread with delicious food. Signpost Inn is not a place - it’s the incarnate grace of hospitality.

Brandon Booth

May 2, 2023

A space with no agenda

The following is a short selection from my recent podcast interview with Tara Owens. As we tried to get clear on what spiritual direction is, we eventually talked about the "goal" of spiritual direction.

Brandon Booth

April 18, 2023

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Listening

Why I'm optimistic about the election

Disentangling from difficult emotions

A sphinx-like, arbitrary force bearing down on us with implacable hostility

People are Complicated

Attention: A Compassionate Diagnosis

Processing emotions means movement

Attending to God in the ordinary

You are not a project

This is why we exist

A space with no agenda