Once upon a time there were two rivers flowing side by side. Both rivers liked to argue about who was the best. “The water in my river is better than the water in your river!” said one. “No, the water in my river is better than the water in your river!” said the other. The two rivers would...

Once, two frogs were hopping through the forest when they accidently hopped into a big churn of cream. The sides of the churn were so slick and slippery that there was no place to hold on to, so the frogs had to swim in circles to stay afloat. After a long time one frog said, “There is no hope.

Once there was a little girl who worried about a very big problem—world hunger. She read in the newspaper about children all over the world who did not have enough to eat. She wanted to do something about it, but she was only a little girl and this was a giant problem. What could she possibly do...

There once was a beautiful and powerful tiger. One day she was captured by a mean and cruel man who put her into a cage. The man kept the cage in the jungle not far from his house. Everyday he would bring out a bowl of water and some food for the lonely tiger....

Once upon a time there was a drop of water named Higgins. Higgins was no ordinary drop of water. He was a drop with a dream. Higgins lived in a valley where it had not rained in a very long time, so all the lovely green grass was turning brown, all the beautiful flowers were wilting, and all the...

Let us contemplate the Spirit together: Spirit of Life and Love, Justice and Peace: Day in and day out wait weary tasks, burdens we lift again, worn paths we wear some more, Want, and means worn thin, and fatigue— Pain and grief, coldness of heart, bitter and weary days&mdash Where we know...

May we honor and hold gently our past. May we live fully our present. May we hope toward and build our future, Living our mission [insert congregation's mission statement]: "To be a spiritual community To welcome all To nurture one another To work for justice And to care for the earth." May these...

“The Miseducation of Justice-Making” excerpted from Nathan C. Walker (2014) Exorcising Preaching: Crafting Intellectually Honest Worship. St. Louis: Chalice Press. What does justice-making look like, feel like, when we receive hostile communication? Are we hostile in return? Or is something else...

Something has changed in me this winter. In the past I’ve focused on how long winter is, How miserable I find it, and how it seems so interminable. This winter, I find myself thinking instead That every day, every hour, every minute Brings us just that much closer to spring. We all experience...

Holy spirit, We feel you moving among us here. Bless us with your presence. For we are in need… …in need of strength and courage. Our road is filled with rocks, with boulders strewn, boulders so high we sometimes wonder whether we can climb them, We are in need… …in need of comfort and...

Spirit of life, bring to us beauty—the beauty of snowdrops and tulip shoots. Bring to us strength—the strength of torrents of spring streams and the quiet strength of roots pushing deep into the ground for nourishment. Bring to us pleasure—the pleasures of maple syrup sticky and sweet on our...

Receive, O Mystery, the words of our hearts. If prayer worked like magic—if I knew the words that would guarantee prayer's power—I know what I would pray: Let life be always kind to our children. Let sorrow not touch them. Let them be free from fear. Let them never suffer injustice, nor the...