I mean I swear I was just updating y’all on my February and now here we are, another month passing us by. March was full and fun just like all our other months as fellows! Let me tell you about the weekends of this month - they are the guides of my mind when I look back. My friends, Liz and Whitney visited early in March which kicked off just an awesome month relationally for me - I adore them and I’m so thankful they made the trip to visit with me in some of my favorite places. Next up was our John Richmond retreat with the Trinity (Charlottesville) fellows where we got to spend time in the sun and meet new friends and learn how to intentionally create a framework for our lives that leads us to a lifestyle in Christ - so awesome right. And only one week later, we did the opposite - we engaged in our silent retreat at St. Francis springs. (we’ll get back to this soon!) My final weekend of March was a trip to D.C. to visit my sister Amelia and her bf Alex at their new place alongside my parents! We went on peak cherry blossom weekend and let me assure you, I was not disappointed, it was beautiful. These weekends have each refreshed my soul in a different way - how cool that four unique experiences can bring such life and joy. I’m leaving March grateful! A year ago I was dreading leaving college, stepping away from a life I loved and people I loved. But now, as we walk towards the end of fellows, I’m overwhelmed by God’s goodness and all that he has brought me into this past year.
I often feel like the Lord brings something to my attention and has me latch onto that for a while, graciously dangling it in front of my face and weaving things together to emphasize it until it really sinks in. This month, to no surprise, wasn’t any different. During college, I took a disability and religion class for my minor (of course, this was my favorite course I took!) and one week we read an excerpt of the book “The Disabled God” by Nancy Eiesland. I’m not going to take the space to really dive in about this but everyone should go read the section of it that is available online. But it wrecked me a little bit - Jesus appears postresurrection to his disciples in his perfect body, one that still bears the wounds and scars of his earthly life. He reveals himself whole and complete as the “disabled God”. The implications for people with disabilities from this revelation is huge, but I would argue this article has massive relevance to everyone's life. What brokenness do we have that we just don’t believe Jesus gets? Do we hold that brokenness under the blessing or the curse? Many questions stir from this for me, so I decided I would lead my roundtable for fellows on the article as well as a framework for belovedness from Henri Nouwen’s book “Life of the Beloved”. Following this decision, at the silent retreat, the space that I got stalled in was the stations of the cross which Mary Young (leader of our trip) had provided scripture, reflection, and art for. The reality of Christ’s humanity on the way to the cross absolutely took over me, the idea that along his walk he stumbled and cried and humans helped him get to the cross etched itself in my mind and heart. His broken body. Christ’s broken body became so real to me for probably the first time, I couldn’t move away from it. Back in Raleigh I revisited my roundtable materials and realized that this was something the Lord was weaving together, he had made his broken body real to me right before asking the fellows to sit in that as well in our upcoming roundtable. How good is he at that! The cross has taken on a whole new weight for me, after hearing the scripture countless times over many years of sitting in church. It was such an awesome discussion getting to hear how this truth impacts each person in the room and the unassuming gift of living in a broken and beloved body. So that’s where I’m at, completely overcome by the cross and seeing Christ in a whole new way as we walk with him to the cross this week. I’ll leave you with this quote from Nancy Eiesland’s book, “The Eucharist is a remembrance of a broken body–and a celebration of the miraculous liberation that wells up from that broken body.” His broken body is the means to our freedom, it wells up from his wounds. Don’t let that fly over your head as it so easily can. By his wounds, we are healed!!!
A quick little what I’m loving atm!
Seeing my sis in her new city!
8th grade girls small group with my queen of a coleader, Mary Stuart
The fact that I had a blueberry flat white, iris’ new spring latte, and an everything bagel croissant today - impeccable lineup
Our surprise summer bday party! It was touch and go but we successfully shocked!
Friends! College friends, fellow friends, all of the friends - I’ve got good people
SPRINGGGG (especially the flowers)
Making my friends swing at pinatas, forgot how good it feels to watch that
Trader joes mini coffee ice cream cones
Chip! My host dog
New Flatland Calvary album
And all the in between!!
Happy spring! See ya in a month
With love, Reagan
