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Feed your spirit with these stories and reflections about living in relationship.
Pray for me. Pray for the earth.
by Venice Williams I’LL BE THE FIRST TO ADMIT that I can be a bit obsessive when it comes to this. I am not in denial. I know I get on some folks’ nerves. Okay, maybe a lot of folks! I really just cannot reel myself back in. Maybe everyone reading this should just...
Sarah’s table
by Dorothy Probst I MET SARAH, MY THEOLOGY PROFESSOR’S WIFE, in a YMCA water aerobics class. Upon learning that I was her husband’s student at the seminary, Sarah befriended me. I was often invited to their home for lively barbeque parties. My family had all passed...
Support 2122 and Katie’s Fund
by Linda Post Bushkofsky EARLIER THIS SUMMER WOMEN OF THE ELCA launched a major campaign to raise $1 million for the Katharina von Bora Luther Endowment Fund, lovingly known as Katie’s Fund. The churchwide executive board, as financial stewards of Women of the ELCA,...
Piecing resilience
LWR quilts wrap the world in God’s love. by Anne Basye IS THERE ANY MORE POWERFUL symbol for resilience than a quilt? Patched together from scraps of worn clothing and linen, quilts blend beauty with thrift. Stitched with love by their creators, they strengthen their...
A purse that won’t wear out
Peggy found the real treasure. By Jennifer M. Ginn WHILE I’M PUTTING IN my customary few hours at the church yard sale, talking with shoppers and cruising the tables for my own bargains, along comes Peggy, an older church member whose adult daughter lives with her....
Lessons from the forge
by Laura Brix Newbury A SMALL FORGE in a church parking lot may seem like an unusual place to heal wounded hearts, but that's what happened at an event our congregation hosted this past spring. We were fortunate to be one of the stops on a nationwide book tour for...
Audacious Faith
In Luke 24, the disciples stood dumbfounded, staring into heaven, wondering what was next, the words of Jesus ringing in their ears: “See, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”...
Signs of the kingdom: In Jesus’ stories we recognize our own
by Jennifer Ginn— Teresa's eyes sparkle from her little Zoom square, as she describes finding her new home. After 30 years in New York working in banking, she’d been ready to move closer to family. She’d downsized several times previously but did so once again—this...
The fabric of the Holy Spirit
by Kristin Berkey-Abbott— Every year as Pentecost approaches, I see memes and essays about the nature of the Holy Spirit, about how we should be careful about inviting the Holy Spirit into our lives because we never know what we’re about to unleash. Some essay writers...
I don’t have a prayer!
by Libby Howe Should all Christian leaders be awesome pray-ers? What makes for an “awesome pray-er” anyway? Who gets to say? Praying aloud with others is not for everyone, just as preaching a sermon or teaching a Sunday school class is not something everyone is...
Gathered in love
by Anne E. Basye— “I can’t breathe.” These three words catapulted anti-racism work to the top of the ELCA agenda last summer. Anti-racism work has been central to the ELCA since 1993, when the churchwide assembly voted to approve the social statement Freed in Christ:...
Let’s be honest.
by Sarah Carson— It's that time of year again. The days are getting longer. The grass is getting greener. It’s May—which means it’s time for Gather’s annual intergenerational devotional. Many of this issue’s authors share how intergenerational relationships touch our...
“You were messengers of God for me…”
by Mary Campbell A mom we'll call Carmen and her two daughters fled Honduras after gang members began stalking her oldest daughter, whom we’ll call Ana. The gang’s leader wanted Ana, a teenager, to be his girlfriend. Before this, the gang had threatened the family,...
The faith community needs to talk about suicide
by Sarah Carson— To call 2020 a “difficult year” would be an understatement. From the COVID-19 pandemic, to the economic upheaval caused by lockdowns and safety measures, to the bright light shining on the systemic injustices in America and elsewhere, is there any...
Never alone
Elizabeth Hunter— I remember hearing the news about a 28-year old mom from Missouri who became ill with COVID-19, 26 weeks into pregnancy with her second child. She was intubated, sedated and placed on a life support machine. While fighting for her life and her baby’s...
Creating for Christmas: Lutheran artists bring their gifts.
Symbolic of the first gifts the wise men brought to the baby Jesus—gold, myrrh and frankincense— the tradition of gift-giving has long been associated with the seasons of Advent and Christmas. While we know Christmas isn’t about the tangible things, many of us hope to...
Circles of friendship
by Sonia C. Solomonson— What are your plans for National Women’s Friendship Day (Sunday, September 20)? Oh, you didn’t know? I didn’t know either until I was asked to write this article. Created by the Kappa Delta Sorority in 1999, National Women’s Friendship Day...
God of grace
by Catherine Malotky— God of grace, in Jesus’ interaction with Zacchaeus, we see you at work. Zacchaeus was likely not a scoundrel to begin with, though as a tax collector he certainly had to compromise over time to meet the requirements of his job. I wonder: What...