In a time when rights are being rolled back and fear feels louder than compassion, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed–like nothing we do can make a real difference. But what if hope isn’t a feeling? What if it’s something we practice?

In this episode, we revisit the urgent issue of hunger–but through a new lens: connection, dignity, and justice. Pastor Joanne Engquist joins us to talk about feeding families in crisis, why food justice goes far beyond charity, and how programs like Give.Share.Eat. are quietly disrupting cycles of fear and scarcity.

We’re a small church with limited resources, but we’ve helped distribute over 600,000 meals. That’s a lot of hope in motion. And maybe that’s the real point: not to wait until we feel hopeful, but to build it – one shared table at a time.

Visit GiveShareEat.com to learn more.

In a world where hunger persists even in seemingly prosperous communities, we’re digging deeper into the realities of food insecurity and what it means for our neighbors. Join us as we discuss the stories behind the statistics and the power of collective action.

Want to make a difference?Volunteer for the next Give.Share.Eat. meal packing event on May 30-31. Visit GiveShareEat.com to sign up and learn more.

Looking for more resources? Check out Northwest Harvest to see how you can support the fight against hunger.

One rhythm we all deal with is being stuck in a routine—a kind of predictable monotony that, at first, feels comfortable or even necessary. Just like life, sometimes faith feels vibrant, and other times, it’s stuck on repeat. In this episode, we’re exploring what it means to keep showing up when faith feels more like muscle memory than conviction.

As church attendance declines and familiar patterns fade, many faith communities are asking hard questions—about purpose, connection, and what it means to still be here. In this episode, we explore the tension of measuring the invisible—the quiet faithfulness of the remnant, the shifting metrics of effectiveness, and the stubborn hope that something meaningful is still happening, even if we can’t count it. If the old measures no longer apply, how do we know when we're still on the right path?

What does it mean to live as a citizen shaped by faith—not fear or empire? In this reflection, we wrestle with exhaustion, neighborliness, and the stubborn hope that real change starts from the ground up.

We love Easter’s joy, but what about the part of the story we’d rather skip? This Good Friday, we lean into the tension, the silence, and the strange kind of honesty that still speaks.

In this final episode of our Manna and Mercy series, we revisit the idea of God’s dream—not as a far-off destination, but as something we’re called to live into here and now. I reflect on how my own thinking has shifted over the course of this journey, from waiting for the dream to arrive to realizing it shows up when we make it real.

We also return to a moment from an earlier conversation with Pastor Susan and Pastor Joanne that helped reframe everything.

If you’ve ever struggled with hope in a world that feels heavy—this one’s for you.

We’re continuing our journey through Manna and Mercy—unpacking its deceptively simple but deeply radical message. As we explore the rise and fall of rulers, the voices of prophets, and the arrival of Jesus, one thing becomes clear: we keep learning the same lessons… and we keep failing to act.

A people cry out for a leader to save them. A promise of power and order. A system that starts with hope and ends in corruption. Again. And again.

And here we are—watching democracy unravel, watching the church get hijacked by empire, watching the same cycle repeat.

But what if we’ve been looking in the wrong place all along? What if the answer isn’t at the top of the pyramid, but at the bottom?

In this episode, we explore:🔥 How Dan Erlander’s Manna and Mercy reveals a deceptively simple but radical truth⚡ The prophets we’ve ignored—again and again🛑 White Christian Nationalism and its hijacking of faith🕊 Why God doesn’t enter from the top, but from the lowest and most vulnerable places

So here’s the real question: Where are you looking for hope?

Join the conversation on The Expedition, and let’s figure this out together.

Sabbath isn’t just a personal break—it’s a declaration of freedom.

Think about where the Israelites had just come from—Egypt. Under Pharaoh, they were human machines—valued only for what they could produce. No rest, no margin, just endless quotas.

But in the wilderness, God gives them a gift: A day to stop. A reminder that they are more than their labor.

We're spending the next 6 weeks at Gethsemane Lutheran Church exploring Manna and Mercy by Dan Erlander—a brief history of God's promise to heal the universe—as part of our Lenten devotion. This week, we started with "Beginnings."