by Becca Ehrlich Trigger warning: infant loss, spiritual abuse A few years ago, I went on a 3-week retreat to Costa Rica to appear on a TV show called Lost Resort. On the retreat, we had group activities and one-on-one sessions with leaders of the retreat called “healers.” I had gone on this retreat to […]
“Then I saw in the right hand of the one seated on the throne a scroll written on the inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals, and I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” And no one in heaven […]
by Susan Schneider When the list of high school basketball players who made the varsity team was posted, Michael’s name was not on it. Instead, the promising sophomore was encouraged to join the junior varsity team. The fifteen-year-old went home and cried. He threatened to quit the sport altogether, but his mother encouraged him to […]
by Ralen Robinson The long table is rolled into the Narthex. The baked goods are artfully arranged. The coffee percolates in the coffee pots. The Pastor can be heard in the distance dismissing the assembly of people gathered Sunday morning for service. The aroma welcomes the people from the sanctuary to convene together for coffee […]
by Sarah Carson Lately, I’ve been obsessed with the first few lines of Mary Oliver’s famous poem “Wild Geese”: “You do not have to be good,” the poem begins. You don’t have to walk through the desert on your knees, repenting. All you have to do, Oliver says, is “let the soft animal of your […]
by Karris Golden There’s a moment when you know the Holy Spirit is present. But it can be difficult to pinpoint what gives you certainty. I have had these feelings — most often during prayer or worship with others. It seemed to me the others felt them, too: the tingling, the sense of awe, the […]
by Jennifer Hackbarth Once I was given a three-month sabbatical from my responsibilities as a pastor. Not many people have such a wonderful opportunity, so I was intentional about making the best use of this gift–this gift for which I was, and am, so grateful. I chose the power of water as the theme of […]
by Wanda Frenchman The song, “Times like these” by the popular rock band, Foo Fighters, came to life for me recently as I heard it performed live at a concert—one of the few that I attended since the pandemic began. It is also one of my top ten favorite songs of all time because of […]
by Ralen Robinson It’s okay not to be okay. The other day I was in Trader Joes getting groceries when I ran into someone I knew. In our conversation, they asked, “How are you doing?” And I responded, “okay.” Yet, that was far from the truth. I was stressed from work and had a mountain […]
by LeeAnn Pomrenke Some of us are not built for giving things up completely “cold turkey.” Establishing more sustainable habits means that they have to be actions I can and will keep doing and be better for the environment. I know that thinking that my small actions cannot make a difference is an excuse that […]