Why are we so slow to recognize you, God? Sure, you come in many guises, but you give us an awful lot of clues. Wherever there is beauty, there you are. However our bodies and souls are nourished, there you are. Whenever there is delight, there you are. Whomever offers us connection and belonging, there… Read More
Friday prayer: peace be with us
Risen Lord, too often the doors of my heart are locked tight for fear of the unfamiliar. I need to know some things before I invite anything, anyone, in. Who’s jiggling the handle? What do they want? How will I be changed if I peek through the crack in the door jamb? I’ve been hurt… Read More
Friday prayer: a Good word
We call this Friday good. What does “good” even mean? It’s a word so over- and misused as to be almost meaningless. We sometimes say, “Naw, I’m good” even when we’re dying on the inside. We sometimes say, “It’s good” when we really mean it’s barely good enough. We sometimes say, “Ok, good.” when we’re… Read More
The pastor is political: global citizens
I had just started taking a weekly training online when Covid-19 shut down the entire world. It was a small group of people who gathered on Thursdays to learn to mentor coach, and I was the only student born in the United States. My classmates dialed in from China, India, Belgium, and Atlanta, Georgia. As… Read More
Friday prayer: being blessed and being a blessing
God by whom we are renamed and repurposed, you kick us off of our couches, grooved and worn around the shapes of our bodies, and summon us to as-yet unknown destinations. Along the way we’ll fudge and manipulate to get out of scrapes, start to make a home anywhere that looks semi-hospitable, and try to… Read More
Friday prayer: water, water everywhere
Water: the trinitarian substance that contains multitudes As a liquid it cleans, quenches thirst, and bears vessels between land masses It also floods homes and communities, leaving behind physical and financial ruin As a solid it preserves our food, locks toxic gases beneath permafrost, and cools us off in extreme heat It also induces hypothermia,… Read More
Friday prayer: going to the mountaintop
It was a hard slog to the mountaintop, God. There were fallen trees and loose gravel, mud puddles and unforgiving inclines. Spent and winded as I am, though, the climb was worth it. From here I see just a bit more of what you do: the variations in terrain, the range of colors in the… Read More
Friday prayer – looking for God
Hide-and-seek God, everyone is searching for you. Where are you in the scramble for Covid vaccine appointments? In the terse words of anxious parishioners? In the utter exhaustion of sprinting in place for nearly a year? In the fear over what extremists are plotting in the remote corners of the web? In the worry over… Read More
Friday prayer: in the silence
Last night was silent, God. The sanctuary was not challenging the fire marshall’s capacity limit. There were no squeals of delight as members hugged children of the church visiting from out of town. Voices husky with emotion did not meld in a chorus of praise, holding candles aloft. Even so your people, your ministers, were… Read More
Friday prayer: the nights are long
“I’m afraid of the dark” whispered a tender voice beside my groggy head. I followed the voice’s owner down the hall into the room dimly illumined by his nightlight and under his comic book-themed bedsheets. I snuggled him as he vibrated with anxious energy. It was all I could do as he struggled with his… Read More
