by Emily Wierenga | Jun 24, 2013 | church, death, faith, humanness, loss, mourning, open letter, pain, pastor, pastor's daughter, sorrow
Dear Pastors,I am your daughter.I am the daughter of a reverend and I know what the inside of a church looks like. I know the hardness of the pew and the length of a Sunday morning and the visits: so many visits to so many strangers when all you want is for your daddy... by Emily Wierenga | Jun 4, 2013 | cancer, church, death, faith, peace, psalm 23, shadow, sheep, shepherd, trust
I’m learning how to shepherd. I feel the call, tugging at my hemline.But before you can shepherd, you have to know what it means to be a sheep.Sabbaths are hard for me. Not because I don’t want to rest but because I feel obligated to keep doing, keep... by Emily Wierenga | May 29, 2013 | bible, burned, church, control, devotions, evangelicalism, imperfect prose on thursdays, motherhood, prodigal magazine, religion, self, the me generation
…For a while, I became so burned by the church that I decided I would take things into my own hands.I would not get hurt again. I would make the Bible what I wanted it to be and I would apply only the parts of it that I wanted to believe in. I would play god.... by Emily Wierenga | Apr 24, 2013 | abandonment, betrayal, christian, church, Churchian, congregation, forgiveness, grace, hurt, hurting, Jesus, pain, people, salvation, suffering
Welcome to Imperfect Prose on Thursdays. Today’s post is written by IP team member Elizabeth Stewart of Just Following Jesus. Link up your posts below!I read the words and I see the wounds behind them. The words weep with hurt and ooze with the putrid... by Emily Wierenga | Apr 15, 2013 | Alise Wright, church, depression, God, hobbies, identity, lies, life, love, music, passion, piano, self-worth, The Love Dare, titles, truth, value
I spent two years not touching a piano. And when playing music is where you feel the most like yourself, two years is a long time to go without feeling completely you.I was told that everything I was doing was wrong in the area where I was the most passionate and the... by Emily Wierenga | Apr 13, 2013 | Abba father, childhood, church, femininity, feminism, holy spirit, manhood, men, spirituality, womanhood
I’m sitting on the steps after a run. Spring has finally come to Alberta, and the air smells like new things: like garden dirt and budding trees and unsung heroes: fallen leaves and broken stems.Snow has done a number but it’s left everything rested and...