Braving The Waters

 This past Thursday November 5th, was 10 years since I posted my very first blog here. I have been very sporadic in my writing. I have not gained a huge following and that is ok with me. I started this space as a space for me. A space to reflect, to share, to my own insight(often because it differs with where the congregation I am serving stands on some things). I do hope it is a space for those who follow and those who happen upon it, are able engage in some way. Even if that engagement is to say, "I don't agree".  As I continue on my journey of becoming a spiritual director, I hope this space will become one where people can spend time in their own reflection, meditation and prayer. I hope to offer more opportunity for anyone who reads this to engage in an active prayer life.  Here is a reflective vespers service I wrote for this year's Women's retreat for the Christian Church (DOC) in the Upper Midwest. This was a closing vespers service but could be used at an...

Good morning! It is not a secret that I am not exactly a morning person. I can get up in the morning and function it just takes me a little while to "be awake". There are a few things and a few times of year that are the "exception to the rule". -Any week that I am counselling or directing camp -Any time I am in WV/Pa visiting family and friends -Hospital or other morning visits with church members Recently I added meeting a friend for a morning walk 2-3 times a week. Today I am adding another. In September my spiritual direction certification classes started. Our entire scheduled was changed because of COVID and not being able to gather in the same space. So we met online and began to get to know each other. It is not easy to get to know people in this way, but it is slowly happening. Even though we didn't get to spend a concentrated week together, we are still connected. This group meetings monthly. early in the morning, on zoom. My Spiritual Direction Cohort...

Today began like any other day.  My alarm clock sounded and I hit snooze, twice.  Out of bed, dog out, breakfast made, coffee perking. In the back of my mind I know today is different than I thought it would be 9 months ago.  Today I should be boarding an airplane bound for Atlanta. I am not boarding an air plane, I am not headed to Atlanta.  Today I should be officially beginning my in person classes for Spiritual Direction Certification.  I am not meeting in person rather I am obsessively checking the zoom time so I don't miss it because of the time difference.  Today began like any other day, but today is different.  In one way or another we have all gone through significant changes since 2020 began. In one way or another our lives are different now than we thought they would be 9 months ago. It's perfectly acceptable to lament if things that were supposed to happen didn't, or didn't happen how you imagined. It's perfectly acceptable to rejoice if g...

I am an internal processor. I am a contemplative person who needs time to think before I speak. Unless we’ve been friends for more than a year, you probably think I don’t talk very much. My silence often gets me in trouble because my silence is often interpreted that I don’t care. One group has decided that I don’t care and therefore stand, complicit, with the oppressive force. Others think my silence means I am complacent and don’t care enough to even make a comment. The problem however is that I do care, it just takes me too long to get my thoughts together and by the time I have them ready, it’s too late. But it’s not too late. It is never too late to stand up against something that is wrong. It is never to late to stand up for something you believe in. Over the past week I have done a lot of reading, a lot of observing, a lot of praying, and a lot of weeping. Reading, observing, praying, weeping… Communities of color don’t need my tears, They don’t need me to stand to the side and ...

Listen to this Playlist as you read!  Advent 4 Playlist Or you can search for your own version of the songs from this list: Angels, from the Realms of Glory, Away in a Manger, It Came upon the Midnight Clear, Hark! the Herald Angels Sing, O Little Town of Bethlehem, First Noel Call to Worship and Invocation One: Our souls proclaim your greatness, O God. All: And our spirits rejoice in you. One: We will praise you as long as we live. All: We will sing praises to you our whole lives long. One: We will not trust in the powerful of this world, All: But will trust in you–Creator of heaven and earth, One: the One who gives food to the hungry, All: the One who enacts justice for the oppressed. One: Our souls proclaim your greatness, O God All: As we worship you in this place. God of miracles, There is no miracle as grand as birth. As we prepare for the coming of your son, Jesus, create in us new life. Transform us so that we may reflect the light of your son, and become b...

I wrote this for the local paper...it isn't much and it is very "politically and religiously safe" because I don't think my little spot in the paper should be used for tearing the community a part. We all struggle in our own way with the state of the world. These are just a few of my thought on how we can maybe struggle together...without beating each other up about it. Pasrson to Person  “There is No Easy Answer or Solution?” Rev. Andrea Brownlee First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) The work of ministry is nothing short of finding the balance between absolutely crazy and astonishingly beautiful.   In the course of a week it is not unlikely for me to sit at someone’s beside in the hospital, spend time with children and youth discovering what it means to be a follower of Christ, visit with a couple preparing to start their life together, help someone figure out how to pay an overdue bill or find food to feed their family until next month’s check arrives....

Holy cow, it's been 5 years!  When I decided to begin writing a blog I wasn’t really sure what it would look like. I sent several possible “this is what/how I am going to do with this blog” to some friends to get their opinions. They all responded with “these all sound good, just pick one”.  I guess I never really picked one. For a while I tried to write every day but something always came up that didn’t allow me the time I needed to get it done. So then I tried once a week, that didn’t always work either. Over the past 5 years I have written very sporadically mostly when something significant happened in my life(important anniversaries, ridiculous or ironic conversations in grocery store lines, unexpected death or change) Never consistent and never what any of my original plans looked like. I decided to look at the stats. There are at least 15 people who read this blog every.single.time something is posted. That is awesome, thanks for coming back! As I looked at th...

My mom made this for me for my ordination June 30, 2007 Wow I can’t believe tomorrow I return to work!!  These 64 days away have brought much relaxation and renewal. They have given me the opportunity to reflect on the past 11 years of congregational ministry as well as time to discern what God has  in store  for the future. Did I do all the things I planned to do while on sabbatical? No, not really. Was I able to do some things I didn’t think were possible? Yes and I am thankful. I spent time with friends and family, which rejuvenated my soul. I spent time making new friends, who reminded me of the vastness of God’s table. I spent with God, not only in prayer but in the laughter of my nephew and niece, in hugs from friends I hadn’t seen in years, and even in the sweetness of tears as I headed West to return home last week. Of all the things I learned while on sabbatical, the most important is to make the time. Make the time for the people who are important t...

Tonight I am writing from a place I have called “home” for many years. Cedar Lakes Conference Center in Ripley WV. This is the place where I attended church camp and in later years counselled and directed those same camps. It is a Holy place for me even though it is not a “church” camp. This time I am here in a slightly different capacity. A daughter come home, not a wayward  wanderer  but a child of God who was given both roots and wings in the most sacred of ways in the most sacred of places. I am here in this place as the keynote speaker for the WV Disciples Women’s Spiritual Life Retreat. I am in awe, and I’m not sure why, at how the Spirit of God has been at work these past few days. I should back up, before arriving here Friday afternoon I spent a whirlwind weekend in Kansas City celebrating the marriage of dear friends, I stayed up way to late with one of my oldest, closest, bestest friend talking about life even though we already know everything about each other’s...