Hello, friends.
This week I am trying something new, and I covet your feedback. My husband, a firefighter, is finishing up his final weeks of rookie school for a new job; I am in the trenches of young motherhood; and if I’m honest, it’s a bit of struggle to write lengthy pieces each week. That said, I love writing this Substack, and I want to continue to publish something weekly, so I thought I would alternate between my current long-format reflections and a shorter vignette-style, which you’ll read today. I will continue to pair both writings with my usual sections: Everyday Joy, Words of Jubilee, and A Few Good Things.
This new series is tentatively titled Sermonettes from the Y, and it’s inspired by the set texts from the Lectionary that pastors read and preach from each week in many Christian denominations. I think preaching from the lectionary is an interesting practice, because pastors have to sometimes get creative about how to draft a sermon from the week’s selections. For my purposes, I’ll be pulling my texts at random from little baskets at our local YMCA. Our Y has a basket of Bible verses and a basket of quotes, and these vignettes will attempt to merge them into a concise contemplation. I’m a writer, not a pastor, but sermonette seems a fitting title for what I’m trying to do. (Feel free to offer up other suggestions.)
Without further ado, here are this week’s random selections:
This week’s Bible verse:
“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” (Ephesians 4:31)This week’s quotation:
“When it rains, look for rainbows; when it’s dark, look for stars.” (Oscar Wilde)
Personally, I find Wilde’s perspective a difficult lens to wear each day. Seeking goodness, living a practice of gratitude, feels like wearing too strong of a lens prescription. I remember putting on my mother’s glasses as a child, and I could see, more sharply than I could without them, but it made my head hurt and I would quickly take them off. And yet, life without lenses, for me, means life lived in a blur. Colors and shapes run together and I can’t make sense of it without my own glasses. The lenses are not natural, but I need them, just as I need to practice a life of gratitude.
In Ephesians, we are given a warning against bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, and malice—what is previously described in the chapter as “unwholesome” talk. You may not personally live maliciously or deceitfully; you may not be marked by a hypocritical or envious or slanderous character. Or maybe, if you’re like me, you see this list and know immediately that you, at least occasionally, lean towards one or two of these. No matter how you see yourself, we cannot deny that our world is certainly full of this “unwholesomeness” at every level. We live in a beautiful world that is horrifically blurred by both personal and systemic and environmental injustice.
Maybe the divine vision of goodness is a too strong of a prescription for our mortal minds and bodies, corrupted by Sin, to wear. At least, initially. “Be kind and compassionate to one another,” Paul (the author of Ephesians) continues, “forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32). The divine lens may be too strong for us, but I am hopeful that we are being molded into it—as we seek good, as we seek to do what is righteous, as we seek to follow the way of our King. I am hopeful that our eyes and our hearts are being changed degree by degree. And one day, we will open our eyes, and we will see.
With hope,
Jenica
Please click the button below to leave me a comment and share what you think of this new biweekly format.
Everyday Joy
Words of Jubilee
A prayer for summer, by Kayla Craig.
“O God of all seasons,
We thank you for the warmth
Of summer’s embrace,
For the sun that stretches over us,
Bathing us in light,
And beckoning us
To bask in the glow of Your glory.God, be near
In the backyard games of tag,
And the send-offs to summer camp.
Be in the worn pages of a library book,
And in every nook and cranny of
The old wooden treehouse.”
Click here to read the rest.
A Few Good Things
Meredith Anne Miller’s Substack, Kids+Faith, is a fantastic resource for Christian parents trying to introduce their kids to a life of faith in a gentle way. This particular post was really helpful for me as I attempt to teach my kids that they are beloved by God, not just “tiny sinners.” I’ve previously also linked her post on Sin, which I also find a helpful frame.
I’ve written a bit about homeschooling and education lately, and this is one of my favorite à la carte homeschool resources: Wisdom Wonder Project. You can choose any subject—art, block play (early maths), literature, history, science—to supplement learning each month. Whether or not we homeschool, I am excited to make use of it.
I’ve also been diving back into fiction lately, and I’m smitten with the book I’m currently reading. One of my creative writing professors recommended it over a decade ago, and I’m finally reading it. (Thanks, Miriam Parker!) Beautiful language, mesmerizing story. I’m not finished, but I have a hunch it will be a favorite: Three Junes by Julia Glass.
As always, thanks for reading and thanks for your support. If you would like to contribute to this project, you can click the button below to add to my writing fund. You can also simply share this publication with others. It is free to subscribe and share! (Of course, you can always become a paid subscriber, if you so choose.)