The solitary and disheartening season many faith leaders find themselves in can feel like a meandering walk in the desert of solitude. Yet there is richness in walking with companions along difficult journeys.

Poetry can allow us to see things that we haven’t imagined otherwise, or possibilities that we haven’t considered, or give us a new frame for thinking about our experience.

Money is intended to flow. It becomes less holy when it stops flowing. Money, like love, is meant to be spread around. We can use money with love without loving it.

Each Friday in The Christian Citizen, we publish a Religion News Roundup with summaries of religion news stories and links for those who want to read more.

I wonder if the ritual of reading to my children is more for me or for them. I know that someday, one closing in all too soon, this ritual will shift, and I won't be granted the access to them that I take for granted now. This is a sobering reminder that the time we get with others is holy, fleeting, and should be meaningful.