Reentry.

My goal with the first book was to finish.  My goal with the second book was to start a conversation.  My goal with the third book was to write it well—to take my time crafting each sentence, to think of my readers with every story and every paragraph, to find the just the right verb, even if it meant searching for it for an hour. 

I turned my third book in six months late. 

But I’m pleased to say I sent the first draft of Searching for Sunday to my editor at Thomas Nelson last week. The book is a memoir about my search for Church, told through an exploration of the seven sacraments—baptism, confession, holy orders, communion, confirmation, anointing of the sick, and marriage. 

I’m really excited about this one.  I think a lot of you will resonate with my story and the stories of so many others who are trying to make sense of what it means to be part of the Church at this time in history. (I’ll update you on the release date as soon as I know the publishing timeline.) 

I’m also exhausted, a good 15 pounds heavier than when I started, and mildly addicted to Three Sisters Kicking Horse coffee/chocolate animal crackers/Gregory Alan Isakov. 

And as any creative knows, I have now entered the strange period of “reentry” when I step out from my home office, squint in the harsh sunlight, and survey the landscape of all I have neglected these past few months. 

Do I tackle the bathroom I haven’t cleaned since Easter? 

The treadmill I haven’t used since January? 

The 706 unanswered emails in my inbox? 

The blog I’ve been neglecting? 

The friends I haven’t called back? 

The church I haven’t attended in a month because I’ve been busy writing my book about church? 

Faced with these tough decisions, I settled on tackling the new season of “Orange Is the New Black”—binge watching all 13 episodes in my pajamas with Dan. (The second season is way better than the first, don’t you think?) 

But now that my pacifist convictions have been sufficiently challenged by a fictional character (Vee!), it’s time to get back to work. I’m especially looking forward to settling back into the rhythm of the blog, with Sunday Superlatives, Lectionary Thursdays, and interviews and guest posts on Tuesdays and Fridays. While book-writing gives you the chance to go deeper with a topic, it lacks the collaborative spirit of blogging, so I look forward to engaging in those spirited and informative conversations with you once again. 

As I make blogging plans for the rest of the summer, let me know if there are topics you would like to see covered here. What questions are you wrestling with right now? What do you feel is missing from the religious blogosphere? Is there a part of my own journey/story you would like to hear more about? Do you have suggestions for interviews and guest posts? Let me know! Don’t be shy! 

Thanks so much for your patience and encouragement during this crazy season. Even when I was quiet on social media, I was thinking of you with every single word of this book. I wrote it for you.