by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Apr 18, 2019 | Reflections |
First, I want to share this memory of precious little toes and a great big hot mess. I read this story again, and it still speaks to me. * * * * * * * * * I’ve learned a little something about parenting a preschooler: there is always some kind of liquid on the floor. Maybe water because you splashed the sink full of legos when you were supposed to be washing your hands. Maybe juice, because who doesn’t carry juice to go potty? You can’t set that stuff down, it must be carried throughout the house and the cup must be lid-free. Maybe (usually) the liquid on the floor is pee. Because, boys. I’ve come to terms with the wet floors in my house. So, I was surprised by my almost four-year old in the bathroom screaming at the top of his lungs, “MOM!! Come quick, it’s a ‘mergency!” The ‘mergency was that he became distracted while standing at the potty. What was supposed to go in, went everywhere but in. ALL over the floor, his clothes and his feet. We are a tad bit high drama around here, so with fair warning that this was an emergency, he began to weep. My job was clear: calm, wipe, flush, wipe, then scoop him up. “My feet, mama! What will we do?!?” (I have no idea where he gets his flair for the dramatic) “Freeze!” I said. He froze in place. I scooped him up, ran some warm water in the sink and plopped his pee-covered feet into the sink. His tears became laughter as...
by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Apr 17, 2019 | Prayers, Reflections |
John 12:20-26 If it dies, it bears much fruit. If we let it go, it lives. Let it fall. These words took my breath away last spring. My friend Kimberly sang them, over a quiet chapel. About a dozen people gathered, mostly women and just a couple of men. We gathered there for a “Hannah Service.” Our church hosted this unique space for worship and reflection for people who grieved around Mother’s Day. People who had experienced infertility, miscarriage, or adoption loss, and people who experienced the loss of a child or parent were invited. The whole idea was to offer sacred space to grieve. As we planned this service, we were unsure who would attend. My friend Rachel and I had both experienced grief. Between the two of us, we knew the sorrow of infertility, miscarriage and loss. We also knew that church is sometimes the last place we give ourselves permission to feel. We planned the service knowing what a healing thing it is to bring real feelings into sacred space. We were almost surprised when people showed up. Many were people we had not met before. A few shared that they were in the middle of infertility treatments. Some were silent. One woman explained to me that her young child died last year. “I can’t go to church anymore, she said. But I thought I could come to this.” We spoke about anger, fear, and sorrow. We sang. As an act of remembrance, we planted small bulbs into little planters. Through tears, we dug into the dirt. We listened to Kimberly sing: “Have you been trying...
by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Apr 16, 2019 | Prayers, Reflections, Uncategorized |
When churches burn, we are heartbroken, I told him. His little voice asked what happened and why I was upset at the news. I told him, Jesus weeps with us. God knows our sadness when something beautiful is destroyed. When churches burn, we gasp and hold our breath, unable to believe that this mighty structure could also be gone. We remember when the walls were built, how long it took to build this place, stone by stone. We remember how it took a directive, a collection, an offering of the widow’s mite to pay for each brick, each timber, and each nail. How could their gifts be destroyed like this? How could their legacy be turned to ash? When churches burn, we see each part of the sacred space and remember our vocabulary for religious architecture. We see the arches, the flying buttresses, and the nave as the grand spire collapses. The baptistry, the narthex, and the vestibule name the thresholds where we crossed from the ordinary into the holy spaces. When churches burn, we remember the first time we stepped into that place. How the heavy door made us aware of our inadequate muscles, how the stained glass seemed to shine every color in the created world. We remember how the choir voices sounded like they could lift the ceiling and even the whispered litanies echoed with power because they were spoken in that sanctuary. We remember how we looked up at the ceiling, curved as a shield for the gathered people. We remember how it felt to visit, to worship, to be a part of this place....
by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Apr 15, 2019 | Prayers, Reflections |
John 12:1-11 Once upon a time, a door stood in the way. We were awaiting the arrival of our son, pregnant as could be, and quite ready for the birth to begin. My husband’s mother had called every day for an update on when her grandson would arrive. She lived a couple of hours away, and was ready to hop in the car and get to us. When the time came and Jake called her, she was equal parts ecstatic and anxious. She and Jake’s aunt had talked about this trip to the hospital since the very day we had announced that our long journey of infertility had finally brought us to expecting a baby boy. She could not wait to be at the hospital to hold this baby. She grabbed her bag, her overnight items, and her sister to run to the car and hit the highway. Until she realized: her car keys were in her bedroom. And she had just locked the door to that room. The locked door stood between her and her loved ones. So she broke down the door. There was no waiting for help and no frustrated tears. She saw what needed breaking and she broke it. She found a hammer, beat a large hole into the door, and opened that door. She grabbed her keys. Like a boss. Like a mother. The broken door stayed that way for a while. It took some months to replace it, but that cost was never calculated when she swung the hammer. It didn’t matter. When I first saw the gaping hole on a visit some...
by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Apr 14, 2019 | Reflections, Resources |
Luke 19:28-40 We like to be prepared. I always feel better having some idea what a situation will be like. As much as my family gives me grief about saying, “What’s the plan?” I know it matters. We feel stronger with a plan. Today is Palm Sunday, the day in the Church calendar when we arm small children with weaponry (palm branches) and send them to march through the sanctuary without any eye injuries. Add to that pageantry the fact that, at our church, the children’s choir sings alongside the adult choir, and you have a recipe for some really charming chaos. Bless all the hearts. When it came right down to it, our entire plan for the day was turned around. Extreme weather was headed for our area, and the forecast included a tornado watch. With an excess of caution, our leadership made a plan: we canceled Sunday school and moved worship one hour earlier to get people home before the storms. Once again, preparation was in order. Emails, phone calls/texts, social media posts and even printed signs let people know exactly where to meet and when. Adults and children marched into worship at a different time and in different seats, smiling and waving palms. We were reminded that the people of God can handle a little flexibility and change. I hear the preparation in this story of Jesus. You’ll find this, Jesus directs his disciples. When they ask you, just say this, Jesus tells them. He walks them through what will happen. He offers them some readiness for the moments that are coming, like it or not....
by erinrobinsonhall@gmail.com | Mar 14, 2019 | Reflections, Resources |
Erin enjoys designing programs, curriculum and experiences for learners that invite imagination and spiritual formation. As part of her doctoral research on imagination, testimony and transformation, Erin explored the use of podcasting and technology by creating this podcast. Within the community of a congregation, Erin designed this podcast of testimonies, then studied its impact and implications. Erin holds a Doctorate of Educational Ministry from Columbia Theological Seminary and received the 2018 Gabriel Abdullah award for the best research design program for the development of moral values, and the 2018 John Nelson Award for The Bible and the Missional Church, focusing on scripture, congregation, and...
