Life
Nurture your spirit with these stories and reflections that explore the human experience.
What do I do now?
by Sarah Carson"It's strep throat," the doctor said.It was 7:42 p.m. on a Thursday night, and my mother, my 2-year-old daughter and I were sitting in the urgent care examination room.We were going on vacation in just two days. Before then, I needed to read...
Let’s Gather from home
As we live into the unprecedented measures being taken to keep us healthy and safe during the coronavirus outbreak, many of us are lamenting the need to stay away from our congregations and Bible study groups. Although you may not be able to meet in person with your...
Walking with neighbors is a Lenten practice
by Christa von Zychlin—It's the season of Lent which means I’m trying to listen to the Lord a bit more.Sometimes I catch myself thinking: You want me to love WHO, Lord? And serve them too? Lord, if working with your people weren’t so hard to do, I could be...
Can the church be a place of hope for those with HIV/AIDS?
by Andrena Ingram—By the time the month of March blows in, many of us are more than ready for the end of winter. But we could also use a reminder that March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Of the 1 million people in the U.S....
Changing tables
by Elizabeth Hunter—She sat alone at a cafeteria table. Taller than anyone else in our third-grade class, the new girl peered out from behind thick glasses. Some of the boys at our parochial school had already poked fun at those glasses and her...
What kinds of encouragement can we offer one another?
by Linda Post Bushkofsky—Last fall, in the days leading up to the beginning of school, some moms in my community hatched a brilliant plan. Nearly every child in our town’s elementary schools walks to school, so the moms encouraged residents to...
Here I am, God
by Catherine Malotky—Here I am, God, coming before you, trusting in your love for me, your acceptance, your welcome. I am your child, claimed by you in my creation, named by you in my baptism, shaped by you in my forming.I come from a long line of faithful...
Answering the call: Gather readers share their stories
The Bible study sessions in January/February 2020 issue of Gather remind us that God calls us all to a vocation. For some this means service in the church; for others this means faithfully loving and serving our neighbors in our careers, in our communities...
Against the current: Finding a place where I belong
by Liz Colver—I got married two weeks before I turned 21 years old. I had my first child when I was 25 and began seminary at 27. I’m certainly not the youngest to do any of these things, so I was surprised one morning when, as I was dropping off my oldest...
Keeping the struggling flame lit
by Julie A. Kanarr—It was Sunday morning, and I was preparing to lead worship. This Sunday marked the festival of the Baptism of Our Lord, the first Sunday after Epiphany. During the service, we would be affirming the promises God makes to us in baptism....
When a vocation knocks
by Sarah Carson—I've had more jobs in my life than you will probably believe.I’ve been a dishwasher, a nanny, a stable-cleaner/horse-sitter. I’ve arranged flowers, delivered newspapers, waited tables and built towering displays of pop cans in grocery...
There are gifts in the waiting and not knowing
by Jordan Miller-Stubbendick— In Dr. Suess' Oh, The Places You’ll Go! an explorer journeys through the twists and turns of life. This little book is an engaging read, often given as a graduation gift. It’s known for its inspirational message—until the page where...
Waiting in joyful hope
by Audrey Novak Riley— There's an ancient lilttle prayer that some Christians insert into the Lord’s Prayer right before the doxology (which explains that awkward pause whenever an ecumenical group recites the Lord’s Prayer together). There are many variations and...
The aroma of faith
by Ann Milliken Pederson— For the fate of humans and the fate of animals is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and humans have no advantage over animals; for all is vanity (Ecclesiastes 3:19). But thanks be to God, who in Christ...
It’s something you live: An interview with Marilyn Nelson
Since the release of her first book in 1978, Marilyn Nelson has given voice to history. A three-time finalist for the National Book Award, she is an accomplished poet and children’s author, a professor emeritus of English at the University of Connecticut and a former...
The joy that is found in God’s presence does not fade away
by Angela T. Khabeb— According to Merriam-Webster, joy is “the emotion evoked by well-being, success or good fortune.” Happiness, the dictionary attests, means “to be favored by luck or fortune." At first glance, it might appear that happiness and joy are synonymous,...
Soft, snuggly, fearless joy
by Sarah Carson— I am the proud parent of two rescue dogs. I adopted Amos, a hound mix, when he was 6 months old. He’d been abandoned in the former home of his original family, and despite all of the snuggles and walks and yummy treats he’s had in the past 13 years,...
How we grieve varies from person to person. There is no right way.
by Bev Stratton— I remember reading Grandma’s letters when I was a child. I wondered how she could go to so many funerals. Now my mother is the one who attends many funerals, and soon it will be me. ORDINARY DEATH Death and grieving are ordinary parts of life. If we...