When I was growing up in Montana, there was one family with whom we were especially close. So many memories together- eating sprouts, playing Parcheesi, doing church, and walking to the bus stop. (It was obviously uphill both ways, with snow blowing in our faces.) A few years before I left for prep school, their
Read MoreIdentity is important. The feeling of belonging, balanced with a sense of self within the group. I observe the tendency for individuals to feel like outsiders. That everyone else is in, part of some special clique, but they are out. Information that the cool kids know, but they don’t. The belief that everyone else feels secure
Read MoreThe grittiness between my fingers. The light weight of it cupped in the palm of my hand. But I’m not a beach person; I don’t fantasize about the sand. It is salt that I love. Liberally douse the pasta water. Give a generous pinch to transform vegetables. Don’t forget desserts! Sprinkle a few flakes on caramel or chocolate. I perk
Read MoreSometimes we don’t know what we don’t know. Other times I am acutely aware that I am missing pieces. Information and history that would fill in the puzzle. But I am not sure we always know the difference between seeing the full picture and putting our little section together. Paul traveled to Ephesus and located the disciples there. They
Read MoreWho is our authority? Our jobs are complicated. Our clients demand particular services, our employers set standards, and we answer to multiple power structures. At work, at church, at home, at school. Kids struggle to balance expectations of parents and teachers. Summer transitions are challenging. College students return home to find their emerging adulthood in conflict
Read MoreOn Sunday, our sister Glor shared beautifully about her favorite song, so I want to pass that on to you. May you be blessed as we have been. -Renée Since they moved the podium off of the stage last week, so it wouldn’t block our view of the pianist, I didn’t even have anything to worry about
Read MoreCollege friends. We play cards until we’re too tired to see straight; no one wants to call it quits. The first night together again is always like that. Even though our oldest kid is in college now, and we really need the sleep. Our lives are miles apart; time is precious. Everyday friends. How else would I get to the
Read MoreI wish the highs would last a little longer. The sun shines, the drummer drives the beat, the teaching comes together, the prayer is powerful. I want that feeling to stick around. Not that everything is perfect. Far from it. There is loss, and suffering. But a sense of being in the right place, at
Read MoreMay Day breakfast. Euchre and Pizza. Friday Food & Friends. Are we busy or lonely (or both)? I contemplate community often. At home, at church, at bars, at fellowship functions and sporting events. What are people looking for? What do they need? The feeling of isolation is epidemic in our society. Not just our country. Surrounded by people,
Read MoreOur Second Annual Streetfest Against Violence displayed unity across the community to join in God’s work of repairing the world (WAND, FOX, and WCIA). This sermon excerpt from one of New Covenant’s first pastors, Martin Shupack, on 2.10.2019 at New Hope Fellowship Church, Alexandria, Va., articulates why “social action” — rightly understood — is both integral to the
Read More