What is the Writing Table? In the early pandemic days, students, pastors, professors, and authors were feeling a lot of stress on our writing (here is how one of my favorite writers has navigated it). So to help combat the…
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Guest Post | Women Preparing the Way
Today’s guest post, “Women Preparing the Way” invites us to be thinking of Advent. We welcome Rev. Joanna Harader, pastor of Peace Mennonite Church in Lawrence, KS. You can find more of her writing at SpaciousFaith.com and on Instagram @joannaharader.…
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How to Survive the Holidays: Listen!
How will you survive the holidays this year? Listen up! The holidays are here, and children everywhere are thrilled. But many teenagers and adults are wondering, how will we survive the holidays? Great question. Even in a normal year, so…
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Deep Peace: A prayer for loss and longing and love
Sometimes life and loss and longing and love are more than our words can contain. Through these challenging days, only a prayer of silence is enough. Because the deep peace of silence is all that can hold life as it…
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3MMM | Episode 133: Saints Who Inspire
New month. New plans. Good work. Writing. And inspiration past and future. Let’s count it all down. 1) Who are the saints that inspire you? Blessings to you this All Saints’ Day. Who inspires your life and work? Is there…
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Guest Post | Donna Fowler-Marchant on Mothers and Methodism
Join us in welcoming Rev. Dr. Donna Fowler-Marchant as our guest blogger this week. She is a Christ-follower in the Wesleyan tradition and an elder in the United Methodist Church. She is passionate about Wesleyan theology and how it relates…
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Ten Reasons to Write Anyway
Yes. It’s a pandemic. Everything feels overwhelming. Who has time to write? We’re fast approaching a year since our lives were upended. Maybe procrastination, depression, or lack of motivation is keeping you from your writing desk? We have ten reasons…
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3MMM | Episode 92: Advent & Christmas 2020
As we wind down Season two of three minute ministry mentor, a little Advent and Christmas reflection seems in order. Next Monday we will look back over 2020, so this week I’ll keep it brief and offer some reflections about…
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Pandemic Pedagogy
Teaching and learning are essential aspects of human development. From parenting to governing, from sports team to PTA, and from ministry to industry, human beings are creatures who can learn and grow from first cry to final breath. How we…
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New Rituals for Pandemic Grief
We need new rituals for #PandemicGrief. This is our space to gather and collect our best practices for grieving in this season of isolation. Part of the struggle of leaning into joy or beauty — which are desperately needed for…
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How to Survive Your First Year of Ministry – by Anita Peebles
This week we want to share a wonderful guest blog by my friend, recent graduate of Vanderbilt Divinity School, and new minister, Anita Peebles. When I asked, Does it feel better to be in the second year of ministry? She…
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3MMM | How the Light Got In – 2019
Each year for the last few, I’ve taken time, with inspiration from my friends and writing pals Duane Bidwell and Frank Thomas, to compile a Gratitude List of Important Things that I have invested myself in during the past year.…
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3MMM | Episode 42: Blueprint Stories
Sometimes help is literally in the palm of our hands and we cannot see it. Sometimes our ability to see or imagine or welcome the things we need in life is blocked by the kind of deeply seated beliefs and…
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Wednesday Words for Writers ~ F
Feedback This month I’ve been taking a class in creative non-fiction over at The Porch. A dozen or so women sit around a big plank table each week, and we talk about delicious classics like “You Blow My Mind! Hey,…
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Anatomy of a Schism on ClearStory Podcast
The 29th Annual Southern Festival of Books charmed me in ways I did not expect. I met amazing people and had some great conversations. Before I got away, River Jordan interviewed me about Anatomy of a Schism for ClearStory Radio.…
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Clyde Edgerton: 8 Practices for Writing
This weekend I had many joys at the 29th Annual Southern Festival of Books! On Sunday afternoon, I met renowned and delightful Southern author of ten novels, Clyde Edgerton. He read from his current work and told stories. He even sang…
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Wednesday Words for Writers ~ P
Planning One of the harder tasks in the world of writing is the planning required. Yet, planning helps spread out all the other tasks, and makes getting started one step. Otherwise, all the overwhelming steps come at you at once. Even writers long…
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Wednesday Words for Writers ~ R
How to Plan Your Writing Retreat Have you ever wished for an uninterrupted time of focused writing or editing? Yet you don’t want to sink back into binge writing that drains your life and energy, making you want to abandon…
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Wednesday Words for Writers ~ E
Eagle’s Eye View When I began my dissertation some moons ago, I attended a workshop where I learned a few strategies and approaches that I still use today when I write. The workshop facilitator, Dr. Cynthia Ganote, a sociologist and life coach, is…
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Ordinary Time: Wild with Words
The Body Remembers The grass was warm and dry under my bare feet. The labyrinth brought back the familiar feeling of rushing to the center, and long pausing at the middle, and dragging my feet with a desire to stretch…
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Wednesday Words for Writers – G
Go! Go! Gooooo! Sometimes the main thing holding us back from getting our writing done is simple inaction. We just need to go! Sit down. Open the document and go! We know what needs doing and simply need to do it.…
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