Back to School Liturgies
As the seasons shifts toward back to school, we wanted to encourage you with a couple of liturgies from Every Moment Holy to guide your thoughts and minds.
For the full collection of “School Days” prayers - You can find them here
Resources for Suffering
Psalm 23 Class
Good Friday Resources
Resources for Lent
On Wednesday February 18th, 2026, the church enters a time known as “Lent.” The word lent means “spring season” where the days grow longer. This particular practice, and the church calendar as a whole can be a helpful guide in our following of Jesus.
Many are familiar with Advent, the time leading up to Christmas that is marked by hope, joy, peace and love. Lent is the 40 days before Easter that is meant to prepare our hearts and lives through confession, repentance, and self denial.
It is by no means required or a “thou shalt.” Empty ritualism isn’t the way of Jesus. Simultaneously, there are many resources and practices that can help us more fully understand and enter into the story of God with greater intentionality in the weeks leading up to Easter where we celebrate the resurrection of Christ.
If you choose to observe Lent this year, or simply would like to learn more, we wanted to provide you with some additional resources:
To begin, a word of warning and direction from Claude Atcho:
“Lent itself is easily shifted into a self-improvement project, a merely religious way to worship at the shrine of self. Good Morning America's reframing of Lent as a 40-day challenge named after a religious celebrity actor is one glaring proof. But so are our Lenten attempts to make the season highly personalized rather than communal, rooted in goals of self-optimization rather than attending to God. Our personal fasts can easily become a badge of uniqueness or elitism when not, at some level, shared in community. If my Lenten fasts are exclusively and highly personalized- fasting only from my favorite show or my niche hobby, there's little that unites me with Christ's body, and soon, Lent becomes "my" thing, another way to express my singular identity. Discussion about Lent with other believers simply becomes platform to compare notes on all our unique fasts rather than on our shared experience of attending to Christ. In this way, Lenten fasts can simply become another way we gorge ourselves in self-centeredness. In reality, Lent is not about self-improvement or personal uniqueness. Lent is God's gift to us meant to shatter the shrine of self and return us to his throne of grace.”
Claude wrote “Why Lent is Not Really About Your” with some helpful reminders
Claude also shares “A Brief Lenten Word Inspired by MLK”
Pastor Scotty Smith gives us “A Prayer for Lent”
Chuck Colson writes a blog “Why Bother with Lent?”
The good golks at “Every Moment Holy” compiled a Lenten Journal with prayers, scriptures, and writing prompts. See it here.
For families, you can download the Jesus Storybook Bible Lent Reading Plan here. (If you don’t have a Jesus Storybook Bible, we’d love to give you one for free at our gathering!)
The Village Church has developed a helpful online guide - “Lent Guide (free)”
Tim Keller and Redeemer Church provide a series of devotionals “Lenten Devotionals (free)”
Looking for a good book you can hold? Journey to the Cross is a great guide with prayers, readings and reflections.
Chuck Degroat is a professor, pastor and counselor who gives some additional resources with a more contemplative leaning. - Additional Lent Resources
A resource I was gifted this year and am looking forward to reading - A Word in the Wilderness by Malcom Guite
If you’re looking for something with a little whimsy, Courtney Ellis began “A Bird From the Lord”
Playlists:
Lent Playlist by Audrey Assad on Spotify
40 Songs for 40 days - Spotify Playlist
Lent Playlist - If YouTube is your jam
Practicing the Way In The New Year
First, a congratulations. You’ve made it through another year. That’s no small feat. Grace has sustained us and will continue to lead us forward.
As we enter a new year, we would do well to reflect on the grace of the previous 365 days and prayerfully plan for following Jesus into this next year.
We wrote this corporate prayer to help our hearts align more closely to Jesus’ as we wrap up this year and look to the next:
“Our Father in Heaven, We thank you for this year with its celebrations and sorrows. We are grateful that you have been with us for every moment. For the wounds we’ve encountered, we ask you to heal us. For the wounds we’ve inflicted, we ask you to forgive us. As we embark into a new year we pray for your guidance and direction. Grant us a hunger for your word, a passion for prayer, and a love for people. Let us reflect you well in all that we say and do. For the glory of Christ we pray, amen.”
Resource for Practicing the Way:
Bridgetown Church in Portland has developed a fantastic website with lots to help you go deeper in your journey with Jesus. See it here. Perhaps you could pick a practice with your friend or community?
Resources for reading the Bible:
Dwell App – This is a newer app that helps us hear God’s word in a new way. The Dwell app is an audio bible that uses several different readers from different parts of the world and includes original music designed to help us engage. The free version is limited but gives you a taste of the resources available. If you pay for the subscription, you have the freedom to pick the reader and the music track. It is a great resource for hearing the word of God.
The Bible Project– This organization has continued to grow and now has a podcast, YouTube Channel, and even the Read Scripture App. The app is very helpful for reading through the bible in a year and works well with the Dwell app. They also released a new app with additional resources. Click here for Apple devices. Click here for Android.
ESV Study Bible – One of the most helpful study Bibles on the market right now. It includes extensive study notes for every chapter of the bible, charts, maps, and articles make this study Bible a valuable resource for anyone who wants to grow in God’s Word. We have a few copies available at our gatherings if cost is prohibitive for you to purchase.
Bible Reading Plans -
Justin Taylor compiled a few over at the Gospel Coalition.
Ligonier has assembled a list as well. Find it here.
Resources for Prayer:
John Piper – “How do I Pray the Bible” - podcast and transcript
Donald Whitney - “Praying the Bible” – short YouTube clips walking through how to pray the Psalms.
Tim Keller – “Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God” – a book on how to make prayer genuinely meaningful.
Paul Miller – “A Praying Life: Connecting with God in a Distracting World” - One of the most helpful books on prayer. The author lays out a pattern for living in relationship with God and includes helpful habits and approaches to prayer that enable us to return to a childlike faith.
Additional resources on prayer can be found on another blog post here.
A Few of My Favorite Books - 2025 Edition
Advent Resources
Advent is an opportunity to slow our hearts, minds, and lives and remember the first coming of Christ, and anticipate his promised return. If you are looking for resources, we’ve compiled a list with a variety of articles, videos, reading plans, and more. We pray you find this helpful and that your hearts are directed toward the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ this season.
The History of Advent (For those wondering where Advent comes from)
ADVENT ACTIVITY BOOK - From Sally Lloyd Jones//Jesus Story Book Bible.
WONDER - Advent Devotional from the wonderful folks at Dwell App.
LOVE’S PURE LIGHT - Another Advent Devotional PDF from Dwell App.
Every Moment Holy - Advent Journal - Liturgies, questions, response.
Every Moment Holy - Writing Guide - Help in crafting a personal prayer for this season
MUSIC! (For those looking for a new playlist)
SLOW DOWN (For those of us feeling a little overwhelmed, this short read from Adam Ramsey is helpful)
Advent Calendar - For families with younger kids, looking for something simple.
Cultivating Awe and Wonder (For those with kids in the home, this article gives a helpful perspective)
Jesus Storybook Bible reading plan for Advent (For those who love the Jesus Story Book Bible)
Good News of Great Joy (For those looking for daily devotionals)
Advent Guide for Families and Kids (From the Village Church, for those with littler ones)
Advent Guide from the Village Church (For those wanting a detailed, in depth guide.)
More Christmas Music! (For those who can’t get enough of the Christmas jams)
Advent Book Reviews and Deals- (For those looking for a new book, this is an indy bookstore in Pennsylvania that’s compiled short reviews on a bunch of Advent books.)
Same as the above, but for families and kids - Another list from the good folks and Hearts and Minds books, geared for those with younger ones in the home.
Liturgies of the Moment
From Every Moment Holy
When Washing Dishes
As I wash and scrub and rue the lack
Of tangible evidence of my daily labors,
Let me instead take joy in this:
I am loving well the next person to eat from this dish,
And O my Lord, It is enough.
For Anchoring Heart & Hope
Write your blessed name, O Lord,
Upon my hear,t there to remain
so indelibly engraved,
that no prosperity,
no adversity
shall ever move me
from your love.
Be to me
A strong tower of defense,
A comfort in tribulation,
A deliverer in distress,
A very present help in trouble.
Shepherd me through the many
Temptations and dangers of this life.
Lead me to your kingdom.
Amen.
For a Fleeting Irritation
I bring to you, Lord, my momentary irritation, that you may reveal the buried seed of it—Not in the words or actions of another person, but in the withered and hypocritical expectations of my own small heart.
Uproot from this impoverished soil all arrogance and insecurity that would prompt me to dismiss or disdain others, judging them with a less generous measure than I reckon when judging myself.
Prune away the tangled growth of my own unjustified irritations, Jesus, and graft to my heart instead
your humility,
your compassion,
your patience,
your kindness,
That I might bear good fruit in keeping with your grace.
Amen