Letter from Amy: July 8, 2026

The view from our back porch on a rainy morning in Maine

Dear Incarnation,

I’m back from my vacation and very grateful (as ever!) to our wonderful staff team for capably holding down the fort. Did you catch the staff interview series they kicked off last week? I loved reading TJ’s musings on cold water, photosynthesis, and so much more, and I’m delighted by the opportunity to hear from members of our team over the coming weeks.

And I’m grateful to all of you as well, for once again giving me the gift of time away (these were my first Sundays off since my sabbatical a year ago). I spent the first half of vacation with my family in the same little corner of Maine that we’ve returned to off and on over the past 19 years, doing the same things we’ve always done: hiking, exploring shorelines, listening for birds, reading, laughing together, and eating SO much ice cream (daily ice cream — at a minimum — is our vacation rhythm). It was beautiful and fun and refreshing and so sweet.

It’s a transitional time in my family, with one child adult off to college in a few weeks and the other starting high school in the fall. I’m feeling very “midlife” these days. It’s a wondrous thing to watch my children grow and change; to watch myself grow and change; to look backward and forward with a mix of curiosity, gratitude, grief, and anticipatory joy. I find myself reflecting on all of this a lot.

Summer is always a transitional time for our church as well. We say goodbye to people who are moving away and we welcome people who are just moving to this strange region we call home. Children take a break from school. People vacation near and far. Days lengthen, rhythms change, and everything slows down for a few months. It’s a natural time to look backward and look forward, to rest and reflect.

So I invite all of you to join me in reflecting and listening together to what God might be saying to you and to our church over these slower, quieter months. There are resources in the narthex on Sundays to help you pray! And I’d love to pray with you about anything on your mind.

***

I spent the first half of my vacation in Maine. I spent the second half at home, hoping to catch up on "life admin" and to do some intentional fun things with my kids. But instead, I came down with a serious case of whooping cough (yes, grownups can get that!) and lost my voice for over a week. I was ordered to avoid physical strain, heat, dehydration, and talking.

And so instead of catching up and being intentional, I sat on the couch, read books, and slept a lot. I got really into the World Cup (thank you, Cape Verde! Thank you, European tourists with your love for Buc-ees and free chips and salsa!). I practiced silence, however involuntarily, as I depended on others to speak for me. I felt weak. I got bored.

But in its own way, this forced convalescence was a mercy. I have always loved how Psalm 23 says that the shepherd “maketh” me lie down; sometimes I need to be madeth to rest. I need to be hindered in my self-important attempts to turn even the gift of rest into another form of productivity. I need to be quiet, to sleep, to know my weakness, and perhaps even to be bored. I need to remember that I am a sheep desperately in need of green pastures, and that only — only! — my good shepherd can truly restore my soul.

My whooping cough is still limiting what I can do, though I’m no longer contagious. I’m easing back into work more slowly than anticipated and taking some things off of my calendar and the Incarnation calendar (including tonight’s originally scheduled evening prayer). I ask for your patience as my voice, body, and calendar return to full strength over the coming days.

And I pray that God would meet all of us in our limitations and maketh us do whatever is needed so that we can be fed, watered, rested, and restored in him.

***

So, that was my vacation. A glorious week in Maine. An unglorious week on the couch. I am grateful to God for his kindness in it all.

I look forward to chatting, praying, and walking together, all in good time. And I can’t wait to worship together on Sunday; I’ve missed you!

With love,

Amy