Liz Cooledge Jenkins

Category: Prayers

  • Prayers and more prayers, because that’s where we’re at

    Hi friends, I had queued up a post reflecting about how (most) Christian music drives me bonkers, and pondering how we might do better. But then this week happened.  The violence in/around Gaza has been a lot. And so have all the opinions and shouting matches all over the internet regarding how we should or…

  • On Palm Sunday (a poem)

    Hi friends, Reflecting on Palm Sunday, when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey greeted by crowds crying “Hosanna!” (meaning “Save us!”), I wrote a poem about some of the things we might need salvation from (and for). If you connect with any of it, or have something you’d like to add, I’d love to…

  • A blessing for the unproductive times

    Hi friends, I’m slowly rebuilding rhythms of work and rest this week, after taking a couple weeks off from most things due to COVID. I’ve also been reflecting on the ickiness of the feeling of being so unproductive during that time. I mean, I was very productive in terms of watching reality TV, but…not so…

  • Post-evangelical prayers

    Hi friends, After a bit of a partial hiatus, I’ve gotten back in a rhythm of posting a (brief) new prayer 2-3 times/week at my @postevangelicalprayers Instagram account. My hope in these prayers is to explore – for myself and for anyone else who might resonate – what prayer looks like post-evangelicalism. For me, there…

  • Epiphany prayer

    I wrote a prayer based on what I’ve heard six different elders share at church these last couple Sundays. Thought I’d share it here too. The prompt was something like this: What epiphany have you had recently (that is, what do you feel like God has revealed to you), and what are you doing with…

  • Advent prayer: Soul

    An Advent poem/prayer on the theme of “soul.” Soul God, I want to live and move out of the depths of my soul. I want to see soul in everyone I meet. I want to be connected with my soul. So many forces have tried to break this connection. Sometimes it feels like they have…

  • Advent prayer: Release

    A poem/prayer, reflecting on the theme “release.” I’ve been reading an indigenous memoir called The Woman Who Watches Over the World, by Linda Hogan. One of the things Hogan says happened when she was in the hospital recovering from a traumatic brain injury was that she asked all the questions that had gone unasked and…

  • Advent prayer: Favor

    A poem/prayer on the theme “favor.” Perhaps a loaded word depending on the church-y circles you may have been in. I’m wrestling with that here, as well as more generally what favor could mean in an unjust world. Favor God, I don’t want the kind of favor where I have more and someone else has…

  • Advent prayer: Wisdom

    Continuing with the theme of “Advent poem/prayers from 2021 that I’m still feeling”… The word for this one is “wisdom.” Wisdom God, There is wisdom in our souls, deep down. There is so much we don’t know. We carry some wisdom and we need other humans for the rest. We need the whole of creation…

  • Advent prayer: Open

    Last Advent season, in 2021, I wrote a bunch of poem/prayers, responding to different daily one-word prompts offered by my church. This Advent season felt like a good time to revisit these prayers and share some of the ones that still resonate. This one is on theme: open. Open God, I want to be open…