Thursday Prayer: a blessing for a clergywoman

May God bless you this day: May God’s presence undergird your days: sustaining you in hope, indwelling you in peace, encouraging you in faith. May you find freedom and room to breathe when the space seems narrow; may you find boldness and clarity when you are called to speak truth to power;  may you find… Read More

Saturday Prayer – Evening

  Whatever we need this night, to prepare us for the morrow – celebration or solitude, prayers or parties, chores or cheer – grant us oh God.  Amen. Jennifer Garrison Brownell serves as pastor at First Congregational Church -UCC in Vancouver, Washington.  She contributed to the Revgals book There’s a Woman in the Pulpit and is the… Read More

Friday Festival ~ It’s Still Summer!

In some ways, it’s been too fast (vacations speed by) and in some ways too slow (the heat does not speed at all), but it ~ Summer ~ is not over yet.  And we are walking and remembering and unwinding and caretaking and assessing. I’ve done what Michelle Francl of Quantum Theology notes is wise,… Read More

Ask The Matriarch: How to “Retire” a Faithful Servant

Let’s take a moment to call to mind, with deep appreciation, the saints in our congregations who give their time and energy to our congregations’ ministries, sometimes for years. Especially beloved are those who selflessly serve the children and youth of the church. Can we talk about how to shift their role and honor their… Read More

Thursday Prayer: like a bird

Dear Holy Spirit, A sacred kingfisher came to sit on the fence today and I was having an Important Conversation about identity and vocation, about solid ground, tūrangawaewae, a place to stand; and I was reminded that birds do not exist only on solidity: they perch on branches that sway, and on telegraph wires; they… Read More