Grace Memorial Episcopal Church

09/02/2026

08/26/2026

A favorite hymn includes the phrase “to be a pilgrim”. (Hymn 564 in The Hymnal 1982). What does it mean to be a pilgrim? Here’s some insight from the Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Pilgrimage

Pilgrims aren’t going places simply to see the sites. Pilgrims go to be surprised by God and to discover a bond with other pilgrims that only silence can create. But you don’t have to travel thousands of miles to be surprised by God. You only have to be a pilgrim. And you can be that, right here and right now, by opening yourself up to the power and presence of God.

Br. James Koester, SSJE

If you want to take a pilgrimage of your own, our labyrinth is open all the time and available to any pilgrim who wants to walk it. It’s found in the back corner of our campus, to the right. There is a banner to help you in finding focus in walking the labyrinth.

08/19/2026

Question: What’s the best place to pray?

Answer:

08/18/2026

A Meditation from the Society of St. John the Evangelist

Be

In moments of powerlessness, we focus so much on what we should do, that we often forget about what we should be. What if every time you asked God what you should do, you also asked God how you should you be? What if instead of focusing on actions in times of powerlessness, you focused on states of being, like being patient, being charitable, being forgiving, or even being joyful?

Br. Jack Crowley, SSJE

07/31/2026

Really good to-do list here!

07/23/2026

We’ve been hearing a lot of parables in the Gospel readings this year. Why? Here’s one response from the Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Parables

Jesus’ frequent use of parables points to a complicated truth: that the beauty, goodness, and power of God will stay beyond our knowing in this lifetime. So why use parables? Parables create space for wondering and for wrestling with God. Parables invite further seeking - they don’t set up tidy answers to regurgitate on command. Parables plant the seeds of the kingdom.

Br. Jamie Nelson, SSJE

07/20/2026

Advice for starting your week, from the Society of St. John the Evangelist

Restore

To prepare for the day ahead, find a place where you can be quiet and still, perhaps with a picture or an icon to help center you, and allow the Good Shepherd to gently restore your soul. I commend this practice to all. It doesn’t have to be an hour – ten minutes, or as long as you can manage.

Br. Geoffrey Tristram, SSJE

07/06/2026

Today’s meditation from Forward Day By Day is a good way to start the week.

Matthew 23:11. The greatest among you will be your servant.

This is one of those verses I wish Jesus had kept to himself. Servants, really? I’d like to be helpful in a charming, non-sweaty way. But God loves the interruption. The ask always comes when you’re in pajamas or feeling antisocial. “Can you drive me to the doctor?” “Do you think I’m a terrible person?” And you—poor sap—oblige the awkward request. Not because you’re a saint. But because no one else did.

Servanthood, Jesus-style, smells like bleach and hospital coffee cooling in its styrofoam cup. It shows up unshaven, sitting on hard plastic chairs in a hospital waiting room, holding a hand you’d rather avoid. It’s saying, “I’ll come,” when your calendar groans in protest.

In the middle of the grumpiness, joy sidles in—quiet as a cat, curling up in your lap. Then, it’s there in the way your own shoulders drop, your own breath slows, and you remember—oh, this is the whole point.

And God? God takes the awkward, exhausted, halfway-kind gesture and grows it into something holy. Probably while you’re still holding the dishrag.

MOVING FORWARD: Let today’s interruption be the holiest part of your to-do list.

06/28/2026