A Peek Inside the Creatively Chaotic Brain of a Writer
The 5 categories of work I'm always thinking about
Nearly 3,000 of you so far (and growing!) are journeying with me through The Lent Collection and it’s not too late to join. It’s low-stakes, nothing to write, nothing to read, and all you have to do is listen. In other words, it’s easy to enter into right where you are.
A new audio reflection will drop in your app daily between now and Easter. They are only 3-5 minutes each which means if you would like to join us now (or next week) you certainly can. You’re not behind!
Download The Quiet Collection app for your iPhone or Android device (or update your current version to the latest version - you may need to just delete the app and reinstall to get the latest version)
Purchase The Lent Collection (if you are a paid subscriber, don’t forget to use your Soul Minimalists only code that you can find here for 25% off. Sorry we can’t apply it retroactively!)
You’ll have instant access to the reflections that have released so far and after that, you’ll receive one per day at 12 am in your timezone. (If yours isn’t behaving that way, just delete and reinstall it and you should be good to go.)
I was grateful this week to attend a service at a church right down the road from us. There I received the ashes from a pastor I know and trust among fellow Christians who want an embodied way to remember something that is true, but that we don’t often talk about: One day, we will die. So how will we choose to live?
I am an unlikely candidate to have created a 48-day audio devotional for the season of Lent. First, I didn’t grow up in a tradition that observed the Lenten season. And second, we’ve been worshiping with the Quakers for the better part of three years and they don’t follow the liturgical calendar which means there is no observance of Lent which means there is no imposition of ashes.
But I’ve been personally exploring ways to enter into this season for several years now and this felt like the year to do it in community with you. I share that to simply say if you, too, are new-ish to Lent, I’ll be your glad companion in it.
Since I started writing this Lenten series in January, I had in mind the rabble-rousers and the background dwellers, the ones who want to make a difference but don’t know where to start.
I was thinking of those who feel bone tired and worn down, for those standing in the threshold of hope and despair.
I made this for the Jesus-follower who may no longer like the word “Christian”, for the Christians who want to honor Christ, for the orthodox who suddenly feel like reformers.
I wrote and recorded these words for those of us who know full well the difference between peace-making and peace-keeping but are being told they are one and the same.
I made this Collection for those who have given up on a lot of things but haven’t been able to give up on Jesus.
And also.
This week I’ve been extra aware of how my creative self and my time-bound self don’t always (never?) speak the same language. This means I tend to under-estimate how long creative work will take, I make to-do lists that have too many items on them, and I can hardly finish one idea before the next one is beginning to bloom.
Note: Remember the paywall is not to keep you out. If you want to be here, we want you here, which is why we offer a scholarship to everyone who asks (Check out the About page for how to do that). If you join while the Lent Collection is available, you’ll have access to a 25% off code which basically means the $5 you pay to subscribe here, you’ll get back with that code. And of course you can cancel any time.