Author: Sweet Tea and Front Porch Storyteller
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What Is God Saying to Us Today?
Daily Office Readings – Monday, July 13, 2026 Readings: Psalm 25; 1 Samuel 18:5–16, 27b–30; Acts 11:19–30; Mark 1:29–45 One word echoes throughout today’s readings: grace. The psalmist prays, “Remember not the sins of my youth… according to your steadfast love remember me” (Psalm 25). He reminds us that God is “gracious and upright.” Grace…
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What Song Shaped Your Soul?
There are so many songs about love. Recently, someone suggested I listen to “Love Is a Decision” by Harlan Hayes. The opening line caught my attention: “Love is not always about butterflies.” The song goes on to say that love is choosing the name of the person you love every single day. That simple thought…
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What Is God Saying Through This Week’s Daily Office Readings?
Daily Office Readings Monday: Psalm 1; 1 Samuel 15:1–23; Acts 9:19–31; Luke 23:44–56 Tuesday: Psalm 5; 1 Samuel 15:24–35; Acts 9:32–43; Luke 23:56–24:11 Wednesday: Psalm 119:1–24; 1 Samuel 16:1–13; Acts 10:1–16; Luke 24:13–35 Thursday: Psalm 18; 1 Samuel 16:14–17:11; Acts 10:17–33; Luke 24:36–53 Friday: Psalm 16; 1 Samuel 17:17–30; Acts 10:34–48; Mark 1:1–13 Saturday: Psalm…
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We All Stand on the Shoulders of Someone Who Believed in Us
There are some writing prompts that are difficult because there are simply too many people to choose from. “We all stand on the shoulders of someone who believed in us” is one of those. After Hurricane Katrina devastated Mississippi in 2005, I helped lead a nonprofit organization that coordinated recovery efforts. It was meaningful work,…
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Some Places Become Holy Simply Because We Live There
In 2003, I was appointed by the Hattiesburg District Superintendent of the Mississippi Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church to serve as pastor of West Laurel United Methodist Church in Laurel, Mississippi. The appointment felt like coming home. My mother and father were both raised in east Jones County. When I was twelve, our…
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Every Family Has Stories Worth Remembering
There is an old saying, “You can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family.” Every family has stories they celebrate and stories they would rather keep hidden. Yet those hidden stories are just as much a part of who we are. Growing up, I never knew my grandparents. They had all died before…
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Books That Challenge Us: Spiritual Friendship and the Gift of a Friend
Some books entertain us. Some teach us. A few change the way we see the world. For me, that book was Spiritual Friendship by St. Aelred of Rievaulx. I was introduced to St. Aelred during the Summer of Saints study at St. James Episcopal Church in the summer of 2025. At first, I thought I…
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What Is God Saying to Us?
One of the questions I hear most often is, “How do you know what God is saying?” Followers of Jesus have wrestled with that question for two thousand years. In the Wesleyan tradition, and now as an Episcopalian, I have come to appreciate four sources that help us discern God’s voice: Scripture, Tradition, Reason, and…
The Curious Pilgrim 