I spent time as a hospital chaplain-in-training while in seminary, and I was blessed with this incredibly thoughtful supervisor named Eileen. She served as a chaplain for decades, and had an unsettling amount of wisdom, strength, and gravitas for someone who wore flared skirts and flowered cardigans. During our weekly supervisory meetings I would inevitably start crying … More Death, Good Friday, and All the Feels
Looking for some food for thought this Holy Week? Check out these five good reads. (And don’t look now, but these are all written by women. Brilliant, theologically minded women. Pretty sure Jesus is smiling about that one.) Fleming Rutledge’s “Redeemed by Death and Resurrection,” an excerpt from her book, The Crucifixion. “A declaration of amnesty … More 5 Good Reads for Holy Week
Lent starts this Wednesday. Are you ready? … More So You Want to Give Something Up for Lent?
I’m a pretty frugal person. It probably started when I was born in Wisconsin, a state where thou-shalt-live-humbly. Everyone drives Toyotas and Fords and Subarus. Millionaires live in log cabins. As an elementary schooler I literally didn’t know people could buy clothes from the front of the store. I thought those were just for show, since everyone I knew always headed straight … More Faith, Frugality, and Feasting * 10 Minute Devotional
Good Friday is this Friday, April 14. Good Friday is all about the death of Jesus. The horrific, bloody death of Jesus. This day is one of cornerstones of the Christian faith. It’s important. Essential, even. I want my kids to have a grasp of it from their earliest days. To have heard about the … More How to Explain Good Friday to a Preschooler, and Other Things Seminary Never Taught Me
As told with a little help from the brilliant 1996 movie That Thing You Do… When you first announce you’re headed to seminary, your friends are like, “Well, if you want to make a lot of money, you probably shouldn’t be a pastor.” 2. You spend your seminary years in a library and you’re all: 3. Then … More 10 Gifs That Perfectly Sum Up Being a Pastor
My husband and I had a grumpy friend in seminary who always wore a scowl. Yet on Easter morning, Daryl walked by him and the man was beaming from ear to ear. “You okay?” Daryl asked. He’d actually never seen the guy smile before. “It’s Easter!” the man exclaimed. “It is just the BEST day!” … More Easter’s YES
(My husband and son, enjoying our church’s Palm Sunday worship.) I missed Palm Sunday this year. I wasn’t at church on Palm Sunday for I what I truly think was the first time ever. From my days of little girl jelly shoes to high school years in the church’s youth group trailer (yeah, we kept it classy) to college … More On Missing Palm Sunday
I’m a generally happy person. The only ministry job I’ve ever resigned from was hospice chaplain. I love end-of-life care, but nine hours of hospice a day almost did me in. I used to come home and cry for hours. Daryl would talk about a difficult test he took at school, and I’d respond, “Really? … More Sitting in the Sad
One of the best-kept secrets in ministry is how much pastors love their congregations. The best pastors always get a bit personally attached, no matter how good their boundaries are, because ministry is an all-in endeavor. When you’re sharing meals and life, praying at hospital bedsides, baptizing babies, officiating at weddings, crying at funerals, working alongside … More I Hold You in My Heart
Courtney Ellis 