Hello, friends. I am busy writing a Lenten devotional that will be published by Herald Press next January: Prone to Wander: A Lenten Journey with Women in the Wilderness. So I haven’t posted much on the blog lately. I’m dropping a couple of recent worship pieces below. And I hope you are all having a…
Advent begins in less than two weeks! That means it is a busy time for me both as a pastor and as an Advent devotional writer. I feel deeply encouraged and honored by the excitement people have expressed for my book Expecting Emmanuel: Eight Women Who Prepared the Way. I know that many of you…
I have received my author copies of Expecting Emmanuel and the book officially launches tomorrow (September 6, 2022)! Those of you who have pre-ordered should receive your books soon, and hopefully you will be able to find the book in your local bookstore well before Advent begins. Launch Party, Party, Party I want to extend…
Expecting Emmanuel officially launches two weeks from today, and I would love for you to join me on Zoom to celebrate. September 6 at 7 p.m. Central time You can join with this Zoom link If you’re on Facebook, check out the launch event page and let me know you’re coming! During the event, we’ll…
Many of you know that I have an Advent devotional, Expecting Emmanuel, coming out in September. It has felt rather awkward to be working on it during Lent, but as we approach Mother’s Day, the exploration of the women in Jesus’ genealogy and early life seems quite fitting. This weekend, I will be sending out…
My upcoming book, Expecting Emmanuel, is now available for pre-order! (You can order it from the publisher, MennoMedia, here, and from Amazon here.) To receive occasional emails about the status of the book, where/when I may be speaking about the book, a potential virtual Advent small group, and other opportunities, please sign up for the…
Tomorrow I will begin posting daily Lent reflections from this devotional. But today is Toni Morrison’s birthday! She would have been 90 years old. (As I type this, my dog, Toni, is sleeping on the chair beside me. My husband graciously tolerates me naming our pets after favorite writers.) (Yes, there are references to seven…
We Pray with Her is a collection of 100 reflections and almost 50 prayers written by United Methodist clergy women under 40. Each entry is brief, which makes it nice for either daily devotional reading or an occasional dip. Here are some of the things I love most about this book: The writers consistently use…
Denial is My Spiritual Practice. (And Other Failures of Faith) by Rachel G. Hackenberg and Martha Spong. Church Publishing, New York. I received my “advance reader’s copy” of Denial is My Spiritual Practice about a week after it was available for purchase. Which is bad in the sense that I couldn’t get this review done before…
If you are Mennonite, you may have noticed that my last name contains an extra “a”–it’s not “Harder,” but “Harader.” And no, I did not add an “a” for fun; it’s always been there. My extended family is not Mennonite and I did not grow up in the Mennonite tradition. Like many who have been…
Spacious Faith 