encouragement and inspiration
To celebrate day three of Christmas in July, click on the comments link below and share a favorite summer picture of your own.
I’ll go first. I love celebrating summer by taking some time at the lake! Those are my toes pictured – after a ride on an innertube, of course. Ahhhhh, summer. If Christmas were in July how would you celebrate?
Preorder your copy today, and follow along for gifts and surprises as part of our 12 Days of Christmas (in July) celebration!
We’re excited to share with you some of Gwen’s reflections from the introduction to Comfort & Joy: Readings and Practices for Advent as part of our 12 Days of Christmas (in July) celebration!
One of my earliest holiday memories is of my family’s annual Christmas Day trip to Pennsylvania from our Virginia home in the Shenandoah Valley. Getting up early enough to open gifts before we set out down the interstate, we made the four-hour drive, arriving in time for the big Christmas dinner.
My grandparents were Amish, so in some ways the trip was a bit like traveling into another time. I was, in reality, sojourning to another culture. We started in the rural, southern countryside, where we were the only Stoltzfus in the phonebook, and arrived in a community where the same last name took up pages and pages.
As we passed through my grandparents’ door each year, we were greeted with kisses and handshakes all around the room. Women, in particular, were clothed differently, wearing cape dresses and coverings on their heads. My mother, sister, and I all wore dresses on that day to smooth the relational rough spots as these two cultures interacted within the same extended family.
Even though the interactions were sometimes complicated, one thing was certain—there was a place for everyone at my grandmother’s table. Sitting together to share a meal is deeply significant in Amish culture. In some traditions, when a person leaves the Amish community, as my father had done, they are no longer permitted to dine at the same table with their former community members. For my grandmother, divided card tables throughout the house would not do. Just one very long table. As the family grew, the long table moved to a basement room and became several long tables fully extended, connected one after the other and dressed in tablecloths, with china plates at every seat.
This specially prepared table and the generous meal enjoyed there is symbolic of the invitation God has extended to us and our communities. The table is long and there is space for each of us to sit down and join in the celebration. In this season of Advent, we prepare to participate in Christmas activities and we also celebrate the joyful reality of God’s presence on earth in Jesus—God with us. As you journey through Advent this year, our hope is that you will experience the same kind of warm welcome, beauty, and delight that I did when I entered the door of my grandparent’s house.
Pre-order your copy today, and follow along for gifts and surprises as part of our 12 Days of Christmas (in July) celebration.
As we hit the midpoint of summer, Christmas may be the last thing on your mind! Between the heat dome temperatures and extended hours of sunlight, dark and cozy nights by twinkle light may seem only a distant memory. But this year, in honor of our forthcoming Advent book, we are inviting the Some Comfort and Joy community to celebrate Christmas in July with us.
While the tradition of Christmas in July originated in the Southern Hemisphere, where this time of year falls in meteorological winter, we’re building on this practice and offering some gifts, encouragement and surprises as we celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas leading up to announcing our pre-order bonuses.
Slow down and savor the season
Connect to what truly matters this Advent with new Comfort and Joy devotional
In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season’s endless to-dos, it can be difficult to slow down and truly connect to what matters. In Comfort and Joy: Readings and Practices for Advent (Herald Press, September 2024), authors Sherah-Leigh Gerber and Gwen Lantz offer a unique blend of reflections and spiritual practices, noticing the sacred amid the ordinary.
“I know too well how easy it can be to disappear into the chaos and activity of a busy life,” writes Lantz. “I wanted something to help me approach the holiday season with a different set of priorities.”
With readings to walk through the Advent and Christmas season, the weekly offerings in Comfort and Joy include a variety of devotional meditations and invitations. Scripture texts drawn from A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church by Wilda C. Gafney accompany reflections, journal prompts, and spiritual practices to help us slow down and savor this meaningful and holy journey through Christmas.
Pre-order your copy today, and follow along for gifts and surprises as part of our 12 Days of Christmas (in July) celebration!
Thank you for joining with us in our journey through Lent. It is our hope that the reflections, practices and blessings have nurtured you in this season. In just a few weeks, we will be launching a new reflection series focused on the gift of friendship. Your support through reading, sharing and commenting means so much.
And if there is a series or emphasis you would appreciate having in your inbox, feel free to email us or comment with your ideas and suggestions.
May you experience some comfort and joy as you experience the sacred in the ordinary.
Gwen & Sherah-Leigh
In the blue gray dawn
the women came.
He is not here.
Clutching their spices
as the sun peeked above the horizon
Mary, Joanna, Mary Magdalene
He has risen.
Weeping and wondering
The women came.
Come and see.
Holding the discarded linen
Stone rolled aside
Mary, Joanna, Mary Magdalene
Remember how he told you?
Fearful and joyful
the women went.
Go and tell.
Trembling and astonished
The women went.
May you, like the women, be the first to realize the joy of resurrection when looking about the places of loss and death.
May you, like the women, in the times of fear and weeping, remember the things Jesus has said.
May you, like the women, bravely share your story and witness with the world.
And may your voice join with the many women who boldly proclaim the truth: Alleluia! Alleluia!
Happy Easter from Some Comfort and Joy.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever. – Psalm 136:1-3
Mix together Jesus’ commandment to love one another, the last supper, and Passover and you have some sense of Maundy Thursday. It is no small moment in Holy Week. Jesus’ humility and sacrifice joined together to demonstrate God’s enduring love. “This is my body . . .this is my blood . . .” Jesus’ call to remember his loving sacrifice placed alongside the Old Testament recounting of God’s faithfulness celebrated each year by the Jewish people during Passover. This excerpt from Psalm 136 repeats over and over the reminder – “His love endures forever”! The Psalmist is recounting God’s faithfulness to God’s people.
As a spiritual practice for this Holy Week consider attending a Maundy Thursday service in your community or celebrating communion in your home with friends or family. If you decide to celebrate communion at home, Matthew 26:26-29 could be a passage you share before sharing bread or crackers and wine or juice together. Consider closing the time with a song or with the verses from Psalm 136 shared above.
May God’s love be ever present with you as you journey through Holy Week this year.
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
We hope this brings you some comfort and joy! Do you know someone who would be inspired by today’s post? Please share Some Comfort and Joy with them. Be sure to subscribe and never miss a post.
“But you, O Lord, do not be far away! O my help, come quickly to my aid!” -Psalm 22:19
If the Easter story is familiar, it is easy to move through Holy Week without feeling the depth of fear, pain and despair in scripture’s account.
The alleluias and celebration of Palm Sunday are a relief after the ashes and fasting of Lent.
There is a buzz among the swelling crowds: Could it be that the one they have been awaiting has arrived? Perhaps the time of reckoning and justice has come!
In the rush of the triumphal entry, there was great rejoicing in king and kingdom come. But as outsiders to the story, we know how fleeting this confidence and belief was for many. We know that in just a few days, the crowds turn. There is denial and disappointment. Even among the faithful, those closest to Jesus, there is confusion and fear.
And, we can relate. We, too, can be quick to assign meaning, look for silver linings, living with hopeful expectation of some future goodness in an effort to numb the pain of the now, whether in our personal longings or in bearing witness to the horrors and suffering around the world. Yet the events of Holy Week make space to honor the the pain, grief and disorientation of our experiences as we are surprised by the upside-down nature, present and yet-to-come realities of God’s kingdom.
You do not ask us to deny our experience, O God. Instead, you invite us to faithfully live in the tension of already and not yet, what has been and what still yet could be. Grant us grace, patience and wisdom in this stretching and sacred work. Amen.
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
We hope this brings you some comfort and joy! Do you know someone who would be inspired by today’s post? Please share Some Comfort and Joy with them. Be sure to subscribe and never miss a post.
“What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches…It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” -Luke 13:18-21
It is said that you are a reflection of the five people you spend the most time with. Our lives are the summation of the routines and rituals of our daily lives. There is much sacred to be found in the ordinary. Small acts done with great love can change everything.
The kingdom of God is best described by small, ordinary things that over time bring significant change and transformation. As you move through your day, notice small things with big impact. Reflect on interactions and experiences in your own life, where something seemingly small has bought transformation.
God, thank you for the miracle of small things. When I am discouraged and hopeless, remind me of the power of growth and fermentation. May I not diminish these gifts in my midst. Amen.
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
We hope this brings you some comfort and joy! Do you know someone who would be inspired by today’s post? Please share Some Comfort and Joy with them. Be sure to subscribe and never miss a post.
“And again he said, “To what should I compare the kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” – Luke 13:20-21
As a mother of two I find myself wanting to protect my children from the bumps and hardships of life. At the same time, I long for them to grow into spiritually mature adults, who love God and the people around them in equal measure. As an adult now in my 50’s, I can clearly see how difficulties in my own past have brought about compassion and new understandings in my life. It feels counterintuitive to accept that adversity, when placed in the loving care of the Holy Spirit, can be transformed into spiritual expansion in our lives.
I do not believe that God causes difficult situations in our lives in order to grow our faith. There are many ways to move towards God and they are not all negative and painful in nature. But, if we stay open to it, hardship can be transformed into spiritual growth. Trying to understand God’s love, grace, and mercy at work in our lives is mysterious. Of course there are always practical steps we can take, but transformation is a mix of our openness and God’s mysterious mercy mixed together. In Luke, Jesus reminds us that the kingdom of God is like yeast. While it looks impossible, yeast has the capacity, with time and intention, to completely change the final outcome of a mass of dough.
May our lives and hardships similarly be changed by the daily presence of God’s Spirit.
God, I submit my life into your hands. May your mercy transform my wayward paths and responses, so that over time I would be a reflection of your love in the world.
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
We hope this brings you some comfort and joy! Do you know someone who would be inspired by today’s post? Please share Some Comfort and Joy with them. Be sure to subscribe and never miss a post.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” -John 3:16
Sometime today light a candle as a symbol of your need for God’s love and mercy. Spend some time reflecting and confessing particular areas in your own walk where you need mercy. It is hard to admit our shortcomings, but admitting them and inviting the Holy Spirit to work in our lives is an irreplaceable first step.
Close your time of confession by blowing out the candle and saying this simple prayer:
“Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me according to your unfailing love and kindness.”
Some Comfort and Joy was developed as a devotional resource that follows the rhythms and seasons of the liturgical year from an Anabaptist-Mennonite perspective.
We hope this brings you some comfort and joy! Do you know someone who would be inspired by today’s post? Please share Some Comfort and Joy with them. Be sure to subscribe and never miss a post.
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