A few weeks ago I attended a retreat at a Catholic center along with other clergy women. The moment I stepped into the building my eyes caught a picture frame on the wall with the words: “Be still and know that I am God.” As I read these words in my mind, I let out a deep sigh. I sensed my shoulders drop, and then I inhaled and exhaled one more time. As I went from one room to another, I noticed that the space was filled not only with beautiful images of saints but also every room had a picture frame with the phrase “Be still and know that I am God.”
Stories
An Encouragement for November
A few weeks ago I attended a retreat at a Catholic center along with other clergy women. The moment I stepped into the building my eyes caught a picture frame on the wall with the words: “Be still and know that I am God.” As I read these words in my mind, I let out a deep sigh. I sensed my shoulders drop, and then I inhaled and exhaled one more time. As I went from one room to another, I noticed that the space was filled not only with beautiful images of saints but also every room had a picture frame with the phrase “Be still and know that I am God.”
An Encouragement for October
On her final day as our Resident Bishop, Bishop Hope Morgan Ward shared with Bishop LaTrelle Easterling in a conversation about their work together regarding race reconciliation and the Cabinet of Bishop’s Anti-Racism Task Force. Two groups of clergywomen hosted this conversation, Clergywomen of Color and White Women Doing the Work (WWDTW) of Antiracism. The invitation for this conversation was open to all clergy women, and a few men joined us as well.
Bishops Ward and Easterling talked about the relationship they had developed with each other, and the trust they shared.
An Encouragement for September
For several of my childhood years, we had the habit of spending Labor Day underground. School would start the next day and this was the last opportunity for a summer activity. One year, as we were in the middle of a four-hour tour through Mammoth Cave, the guide told us to stop for a break and sit on some large boulders along the trail. Everyone in the group was most grateful and told him so. “Oh no, this isn’t a reward for what you just came through. This rest is to prepare you for what’s ahead.”
An Encouragement for August
There are some days in ministry that I wonder if God wasn’t crazy to call me into God’s service. Moses’ question in Exodus 3:11 (see below) becomes the very question that I ask myself and of God: Who am I? I ask this often in a self-deprecatory way because this is how I was socialized even though I was an excellent student and excellent employee. Even as a pastor, I often still ask myself: Who do you think you are?
I wish I could tell Moses all the great things God would do through him, even with all his doubts of ability and the massive criticism lodged at him from the very people he was called to save. So let me tell you that God’s call on your life is not based on your ability to perform
An Encouragement for July
There are a few phrases and words I use every day in my life. At work and home, I catch myself saying “hope” a lot. As I try to keep everyone thinking positively, “I hope so” or “hopefully” seem to roll off my tongue.
As I write this, though, our parsonage fridge decided to go on sabbatical. And this morning, my spouse was busy getting ready for a funeral he was leading. Since I could tell that baking soda would not conquer the smells coming from the fridge, it was time to say “adios” to the trash and haul it to the nearby dump.