The saints were never meant to remain safely on pedestals. They were imperfect, complicated human beings through whom the grace of God became visible. As we enter a season filled with saints, reformers, martyrs and holy troublemakers, perhaps their stories are asking us one wonderfully uncomfortable question: what might God’s grace look like if it became visible through us?
Tag Archives: Christian Discipleship
The Ordinary Road That Leads to the Saints
As Ordinary Time gives way to our journey toward All Saints, perhaps we discover what these quiet weeks have been teaching us all along: saints are not made somewhere beyond ordinary life. Holiness begins here—in kitchens, conversations, interruptions, acts of mercy, and the next faithful thing God places before us.
God Is Not Waiting for You to Become More Impressive
We often imagine that God is waiting for us to become a more organized, prayerful, patient and generally improved version of ourselves. But Ordinary Time reminds us that God does not work with our improved selves—God works with the people we actually are. As All Saints approaches, perhaps holiness is less about self-improvement and more about surrender: discovering that grace begins not when we become impressive, but when we simply show up.
God Is Probably in the Laundry: The Holiness of Doing It Again
Much of life consists of doing things again: washing the dishes, making breakfast, saying our prayers, offering forgiveness, beginning again. Perhaps holiness is not found only in extraordinary moments, but in the faithful repetition of ordinary ones. As All Saints approaches, we remember that saints were formed through thousands of ordinary mornings offered to God.
The Holiness of Things That Need Doing
What if the ordinary chores, interruptions, errands, and unnoticed acts of kindness that fill our days are not interruptions to the spiritual life, but some of the very places where it happens? Ordinary Time reminds us that holiness is often found not in the spectacular, but in the faithful things that simply need doing.
The Spiritual Importance of Putting the Kettle On
God does not wait for spectacular moments to meet us. Sometimes grace appears beside the kitchen sink, around the table, or in the simple invitation, “Would you like a cup of tea?” In these ordinary days between Thanksgiving and All Saints, perhaps holiness begins by putting the kettle on, finding another mug, and making room for someone else.
God Is in the Unfinished Things
We like beginnings and endings, but most of life is lived somewhere in between. In the Ordinary Time between Thanksgiving and All Saints, perhaps there is grace in remembering that unfinished does not mean abandoned. God is still working—in our questions, our healing, our relationships, our ordinary days, and in the people we are still becoming.
The Holiness of Almost Nothing Happening
Most of life happens on ordinary days—days of coffee, emails, dishes, errands, interruptions, and almost nothing remarkable. Yet Ordinary Time reminds us that God does not wait for spectacular moments to appear. Perhaps holiness begins when we learn to notice the grace already hidden in Tuesday.
The Holy Art of Showing Up: When Faithfulness Looks Remarkably Ordinary
Holiness rarely arrives with trumpets. More often, it looks like showing up, saying our prayers, keeping promises, forgiving, serving, and beginning again. In the quiet days between Thanksgiving and All Saints, Ordinary Time reminds us that God does some of God’s finest work through small acts of faithfulness repeated day after day.
The Spiritual Discipline of Not Being in Such a Hurry
We spend an astonishing amount of life on our way to somewhere else. But what if grace is not waiting at our next destination? In these ordinary October days between Thanksgiving and All Saints, perhaps God is inviting us to recover the holiness of paying attention—and discover that God was already here.