It’s officially cookie-baking season—my favorite time of year to fill the house with butter, sugar, citrus, and joy. One of my clearest childhood memories is coming home from school after my mom had spent the entire day baking. I’d walk through the door and the whole house smelled like sugar, butter, vanilla, and love. I’d sit at the little family room table—our spot—and tell her about my day. It wasn’t fancy, but it was holy. A small place where I felt known and safe. A remi

C & C at the Fall Showcase It’s a beautiful thing when you see someone—especially a kid—find that spark, that thing that lights them up from the inside out. But here’s the truth we don’t talk about enough: even when you find  your passion, it doesn’t always come easily. Sometimes you hit a wall. Sometimes you want to quit. And sometimes, that’s the exact moment you’re on the edge of a breakthrough. This past summer, my son was ready to hang up his drumsticks. We’ve always tri

Hi, moms. I see you. You’re trying to get your family out the door on a Sunday morning — socks that mostly match (optional), a snack bag for the toddler, a coloring book for the preschooler, and enough caffeine to survive an hour of “shhhh” whispers and Goldfish crumbs in the pews. You’re juggling spilled milk, missing shoes, and that one kid who suddenly can’t find their other shoe even though they were just wearing it. You’re not just looking for a church to attend — you’re

Rev. Dr. Anna Howard Shaw Quote: "...hold fast to that which God had given you; let no power, no injustice, no obstacle, no scorn, no opposition, let nothing extinguish the flame... never take your truth down to the world's level." A colleague of mine, Jenny Smith , wrote a poem—a poem she didn’t want  to write. She said it felt too big, too heavy. And yet, she wrote it anyway. Because sometimes, silence is a luxury we can’t afford. Her poem, posted on her Facebook page , beg

Not long ago, someone asked me a question that stopped me in my tracks: “Why don’t preachers preach from the Bible anymore?” I’ll admit, I was taken aback. My first instinct was to laugh — not in a dismissive way, but in surprise. Because as far as I know, I do preach from the Bible. Every week, in fact. That’s literally where I begin. So, I took a breath and asked this person to tell me more — to unpack what they meant. I got curious. They weren’t able to fully articulate t

Warning: this is going to be a super nerdy post. Something remarkable just happened in The United Methodist Church—something that many of us have been praying and hoping for. The Council of Bishops announced yesterday that all four  constitutional amendments approved by the 2024 General Conference have been ratified by our annual conferences. Every single one. (You can read more about them here on the Council of Bishop's Website .) That means this isn’t just a policy update—i

This morning, I had breakfast with my dad. Now, before you think I’m seeing things, I should tell you—my dad died in April of 2024. But that doesn’t mean he’s gone. The communion of saints, or what the writer of Hebrews calls “a great cloud of witnesses,” isn’t confined to some distant heaven. I believe they surround us, especially in the small and ordinary moments of our lives. Today, my breakfast was simple—an “Egg in the Basket,” one of those meals that’s more about comfor