Need a Breath of Writing?
Register for Spiritual Writing this Thursday–Bring a sheet of Paper that has some writing, or that book you keep meaning to donate
And some paper for stream of consciousness writing 
https://www.newbreath.org/events/e3haf2nsas0sm61jujnucf0wefy1tp-apy7t
Good News can come through emptiness
Mary didn’t know Jesus was risen
She turned to a stranger
The person who was tending the dirt
And asked for help
Do you see the Easter moment
It’s hiding right there
It’s not in the race before
No trumpets or proclamations in John
It starts in a moment
of hoping for hope
of reaching out
in planting seeds
After all God was the first Gardener
Is it little wonder that
Jesus is once again on his knees
in the dirt
And Mary reaches out to him
Easter has started
There in the dark
Even before she knows it
The resurrection
starts in those moments
of planting and tending
and then slowly
unfurl
for days
months
as long as we need
to turn
our mourning
into dancing
Here’s hoping
you have those moments
Throughout the
Easter season
Good News can
Come even
through
moments
of emptiness
Creation came
through Holy
Darkness
I hope you
Experience
that this
Easter Season
This is my conviction
Upon the return of Christ every knee will bow
Bc Jesus will return kneeling and serving
And we will all kneel to get next to him
This is Maundy Thursday
This is God kneeling, stooping,
“inclining Gold’s ear” to get close to us in the person of ChristThis is loving and serving
Illustration From LaTonya Jackson from https://blog.brethren.org/2024/ebrethren-3-27-2024/ Kneeling Black Jesus, aglow with holy light—and adorned with with a durag and dressed in White with a purple sash, kneeling to wash a disciple with a snug hat and dressed in red robes, feet, the sandals lay discarded, another gray bearded disciple watches.
Trans* God
You are the
God of Abram to Abraham
of Mara to Naomi
Saul to Paul
You call us by our Chosen Name
You are the God of Joseph of the
Rainbow, Princess, Coat of their mom
who found a family in Egypt
Jesus who found Kinship with
Mary, Martha and Lazarus
You understand the importance of
Belonging somewhere other than with blood relations
Almighty Trans* God of Abraham, you know
That sometimes you have to pack up
and leave to find your true home and acceptance
And that the journey might have lions
and dangers and toils and snares
And yet here is your promise
You will see us
You will accept us
You will call us by our chosen Name
You will always be our God
Will always be your people (if we want
not in any kind of creepy way)
Jesus, Person created without any sperm
who chose to be male
Divine Trans* entity
God, the royal They
The great NonBinary
Holy Spirit
The She who can impregnante
A Woman
God you are the Almighty
the God of Many Mounds:
Which means both many mountains
to accesss and worship you
(note the inclusiveness)
and the God of many breasts
to feed every one
(Again inclusive and accessible)
We translate that
Trans* word as Almighty
Almighty Trans* God indeed!
Almighty Trans* God
You not only
See
Accept
Affirm
and Celebrate
But especially
Protect
all of our Trans* Siblings
during this turbulent time
Almighty Trans* God
May
we forge
many mighty Trans* Elders
make their names almighty
We Pray
Amen.
Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”’
Hosanna is a Protest Song
Sung
in the words
Of the meek
it starts from the back door
with a murmur
a request
for a healing for a friend
an opening in a roof
a touch on a cloak
a plea for an (unnamed) daughter at home
Hosanna is a Protest Song
it bends the norms of society
blurring the lines between
Samaritan and Jewish
Sadducees and Pharisees
Male and female
Salve and Free
Hosanna is a Protest song
Reshaping the very bounds of our understanding
allowing children to come in freely
valuing the widow like the rich man
seeing no difference between the younger and the elder
calling the eunuch to God
Hosanna is a Protest Song
Forgiving Peter before he even denies Jesus
Reminding of Thomas bravery more than his doubt
Telling the story of the Resurrection straight from the women’s lips
Reminding us all that if we want to see Jesus
He is already here, among the poor, the imprisoned and the hungry, Go and serve and you will surely see Christ
Hosanna is a Protest Song
That the world should not be like this
We know it, and we are not going to try violence to bring Jesus back
Because our God is the disarmed God, the one who hung their bow permanently in the sky, to remind us that they are the God of Peace
And when we didn’t Get the message
Sent Jesus to walk the walk of peace even unto the cross again
Hosanna is a protest song
It says
Save us
Saving us
Salvation is worth it
Kin(g)dom is an active verb
It is embodying the prayer
Thy Kin(g)dom Come, Thy Will be Done
Reminding us that Our God wants to save
most likely, probably everyone
And hard as that truth is
That God doesn’t need us to protest for Christianity
Instead, we protest,
To save EVERYBODY
And we need our actions
to fit those words
Because God Loves every stinking one of us
Hosanna
Save us
Indeed
Feel free to use/adapt/share with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
Disarmed God
I remember
that
You disarmed
Your Divine self
Permanently
That you hung
your weapon in
the sky:
Publicly
As a reminder
That you are
the Nonviolent God
The God of Love
It is little wonder
That some people
find Rainbows
Offensive
Jesus Christ
I remember
That you disarmed
Those who would
Stone a woman
in the street
with a few words
of compassion
That you healed
The blind man
Of sins and his disability
so that he had to be seen
as a person with or without
your disability
Stopping so called
microaggressions
Disclusion and other
forms of ableist violence
against him
(we can talk about
consent
and disability
not taking away
From your wholeness
Later)
Jesus I remember
You disarmed
everyone
At YOUR ARREST
when things could
go down in
absolute violence
with healing
An ear got cut off
And no one could hear the
other’s side (talk about symbolism)
You heal the slave of the enemy
…Holy Spirit the fact that you
come to the marginalized
and oppressed at this moment
and heal and disarm
at the tensest of moments
You are the God of
Disarmament
And healing
And give ears
to those who are willing to hear
And help those
who are bystanders
powerless
marginalized
There is no God of
Guns, bombs or violence
Not here
You repeat
that is not You
You don’t know any such presence
The power you exude doesn’t need
any buffoonery of triumphalism
Instead you come clothed in peace,
“Peace I will give you” Jesus,
Prince, Keeper, Steward of Peace
Disarm us
Disarm Humanity
So that we learn the art of War
No more
But only grow food
Food
to feed one another
We pray
Amen
Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
All the muppets singing rainbow connection, under a rainbow
Blessed are the Peacemakers
Says Jesus
God
Teach Us
To Make
Create
Policy Even
Shalom
Peace that is
Wholeness
Health
the kind that
Forbids Dehumanizing one another
God
You know
Because
You embodied
This being Human
There really is no
Such thing as
Microagressions
That is just us
Doing violence
to one another
In another way
Is there such
a thing as
“I dehumanized you
But it didn’t count?”
“I did violence
to your reflection
of the imago dei
But it was TOTALLY
Rationale”
Jesus says
Let the one without
Sin cast the first stone
And reminds us
to judge is Human
to give Justice Divine
God See to your humans
We are down here with
Governments trying to
start WWIII
while us people
are busy trying to afford Bread
Teach us to have
Potluck together
To Liberate one another
To Celebrate one another
As humanity
Teach us to be like Mary
To extravagantly Love one another
To wash one another’s feet in
perfume, so strong
that the scent
of the act
Fills the whole house
Give us the humanity
to love and serve
one another we pray
Amen.
Feel free to use/share/adapt with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
God,
Why are there so many enemies?
I feel like
I can’t ask people
in Kansas
if they are friends
of Dorothy anymore
And the Scouts
do not feel
trustworthy
Today
Jesus Christ
How many times
Do we cry out
Hosanna
Hosanna
For the Trans Kids
Hosanna
for the Sex Abuse Survivors
Hosanna
for the Women’s Athletes
Hosanna
for the Black Actors, Artists and Musicians
Hosanna
for the kidnapped, the revealed deaths, the scared immigrants
Hosanna
Hosanna for the World
for Iraq, Pakistan, Cuba, Ukraine
Hosanna
I call to you, and many say
Why do you call to God
God doesn’t help Woke people
But I cry out
And God answers
I go to sleep and I wake up
God is sustaining us
We are not afraid of the people who are against us
Even if they number tens of thousands
God,
You are already
Awake
So I say
Rise Up
Save us
Hosanna,
O My God!
Deliver us,
Strike All my enemies on the cheek
You
Break teeth of the wicked
For
Deliverance
is God’s
Blessings belong to your People
God, protect the vulnerable
and stop evil
we pray
Amen
Feel free to adapt/share/use with Credit to Pastor Katy Stenta
Herod doesn’t win
Nor does Caesar
The Empire will crumble
God is with the marginalize
the poor
the imprisoned
the oppressed
the abused
the tortured
Jesus walks
with the different
the disabled
the forgotten
the misgendered
the repressed
the voiceless
the hurt
Our Divine is all about housing
everyone
feeding the hungry
clothing the naked
and meting out equity and justice
and true liberation
It is written
It is proclaimed
It is the Good News
This is the true Glory of God
Anyone who thinks they can tame
the Holy Spirit
is a pretender
We recognize Jesus
in every act
Peace
Empathy
and Love
Don’t you?
Feel free to share/adapt/use with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
So thankful Liam is free
Now free all the bebes
From age 0-100
Are we not all
Children of God?
Warehousing people is evil
Luke 4:18
I know they almost
threw Jesus off a cliff
Because like it or not
Protests and Worship
Go hand in hand
Or prayer is
When you liberate the
Imprisoned
Or welcome
The immigrant
In the name of
Our Immigrant God
Here we
Are
Charged with
Going out
And getting
Justice for
The Abused
And Oppressed
And Against
Systematic
Death
Dealing
Structures
Sounds like
Real Work
Wonder why those in Power
Tried to throw
Jesus off a cliff
The cliff for that
Feel free to use/adapt/share with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta aka “KatyandtheWord”
katyandtheword 