Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? Covid still rages in spots around the globe. Soul- and body-crushing white supremacy undergirds many of our systems. Families and individuals struggle to live day-to-day without enough financial support. The planet is dying. People are dehumanized for who they are and whom they love. Abuse briefly… Read More
Friday prayer: a sturdy house
A house divided against itself cannot stand. And yet, we resist one another at almost every turn. “That’s not what I want.” “You can’t tell me what to do.” “It wasn’t me.” “You’re wrong.” In the moment it’s so much easier to ignore or deny or blame, but each decision to disconnect opens another crack… Read More
Friday prayer: we need each other
I rememberwhen you brushed my hair into lopsided pigtailswhen you let me “work” at your office to earn quarterswhen you came to every basketball game to watch me take statswhen you took me on spring break parent-child adventureswhen you sent me goofy pictures and motivational quotes, knowing I was homesick at collegewhen you played with… Read More
Friday prayer: you are love
Love. It sounds so effortless: “I just love on everyone.” Well, that ease depends on other people being lovable. Often they’re not. (Often I’m not.) Then, compassion becomes hard work: staying connected and showing up when we’d rather not, looking for the much-obscured divine image within each person. If I’m honest, this is the kind… Read More
Friday prayer: don’t fear the naysayers
“By what power or by what name did you do this?” they said to Peter, not caring for his message, hearing in it the threat of imminent change. Yes, that Peter – one of Jesus’ twelve closest companions, the rock on which Christ declared he would build his church. If people argued with Peter, is… Read More
Friday prayer: God around us, God in us
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
