Latest from ESALenten Devotion: Disappointment with God and Persistent HopeMarch 18, 2019By Rev. Dr. Mae Elise Cannon What does it mean to have Persistent Hope in the midst of disappointment and despair? Throughout the 40 days of Lent, this is the theme I am wrestling with, praying through, and seeking to understand as we wait together and long for Easter morning. This…...Read more...If Thomas Merton Resisted His Calling, So Can YouMarch 15, 2019By Ed Cyzewski Editor’s Note: For the season of Lent, Ed Cyzewski has created a daily email list that shares quotes from Trappist monk and contemplative prayer author Thomas Merton. Each Friday here on ESA, Ed will share a few reflections on Merton’s wisdom for us today based on these…...Read more...Start SmallMarch 14, 2019By Cindy Wang Brandt Dishes are an underdiscussed topic in parenting books. While others focus on children (not sure why that is), I feel like dishes deserve much more attention simply because of the amount of space they occupy in family life. This morning, my child brought out six cups…...Read more...For Those With Ears to Hear: A Review of “The Color of Compromise”March 13, 2019Join Us Today! On March 13th, ESA will be talking with Jemar Tisby via Facebook Live at 12:15 PM EST! We hope you can join us for the conversation. By Adriel Rose I don’t know if I’ve ever purposefully started reading a book knowing that I would undoubtedly struggle with…...Read more...Turning Guns Into Garden ToolsMarch 11, 2019By Shane Claiborne and Michael Martin It’s been said that you can count the number of seeds in an apple but you can’t count the number of apples in a seed. We live in a world of abundant life, where one apple can produce hundreds of offspring. But the same…...Read more...A Prayer for Mental Health and Emotional WellnessMarch 8, 2019 A Booklet of Uncommon Prayer, from which this prayer is taken, is now available electronically!Read more...Why Practice Lent? Because Everything Is BrokenMarch 7, 2019By Lenora Rand Ok, maybe not everything… But, yeah, a lot of stuff is broken. An awful lot. Big stuff. Little stuff. Little stuff that feels like big stuff. Take my foot, for example. One day this week, while I wasn’t doing anything, suddenly my foot started hurting. Like really…...Read more...Woodstoves and Ash WednesdayMarch 6, 2019By Christie Purifoy Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Every winter I walk a circle. It begins at the woodstove in my kitchen where I will cram one more hardwood log into the fiery maw. At least, I choose this as the beginning because it suits this story. Fire makes…...Read more...Bedfellows: A Review of “Breaking the Marriage Idol”March 5, 2019By Bridget Eileen The necessity of marriage is seldom, if ever, questioned in our culture, whether secular or Christian. The centrality of marriage to our anthropology feels ubiquitous. More than once, I’ve heard pastors describe marriage from the pulpit as the “ultimate” human relationship, and rarely in church have I…...Read more...
