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Jesus and his group of followers were so small, and they faced an immense force. And yet, Jesus says, remember the growth of a single mustard seed; remember how yeast works. Br. Curtis Almquist reflects on Jesus’ images of mustard seed and yeast as encouragement when injustice and political power feel overwhelming in the week of a divisive election.

Let your prayer be for the real person, not the image you have built up of them. When it’s real people we’re bearing in our hearts, we may discover the common thread between them: that they all alike are created and loved and cherished by God. Br. Lain Wilson Preaching on the famous commandment "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" in the rancor of a national election cycle, Lain Wilson explores how biblical love is defined by concrete action rather than mere emotion.

If you show up at someone’s door empty-handed demanding answers, you will probably get treated as a stranger. But if you show up at someone’s door with a warm pizza in hand, a smile on your face, and a certain warmth in your heart, suddenly you are family. Reminding us that neither Jesus’ family nor any family we will ever meet is “normal,” Br.Jack Crowley urges us to let the mystery of one another become fuel for forgiveness, tender hospitality, and deep compassion.

God is not more present here. Rather, there is repeated invitation and shared practice here of paying attention, listening for, and recognizing God, who is and communicates everywhere. Br. Luke Ditewig reflects on blessing as praise, prayer for others, and a way of recognizing God’s presence rather than trying to make God more present.

The call to transformation appeals to many, but the journey to proficiency – that is, actual change – tests us at every stage. Using the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew, Br. Keith Nelson reimagines the church as a spiritual dojo where discipleship is an ongoing spectrum of growth where the stumbles and bruises add up to a larger whole. He identifies three pitfalls that stall our spiritual progress – declining God’s daily invitations, settling for idols in moments of impatience, and holding back total commitment – and calls us to a wholehearted, deepening "yes."

Mary was obedient, not in the sense that she simply did what she was told to do, like a five-year-old, but because she listened deeply to the call of God, and bravely responded with her ‘yes,’ even though she did not understand the ultimate consequences. Br. James Koester defends the deeply Anglican nature of honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary, connecting her presence to the core mystery of the Incarnation. He interprets Jesus’ words in the Gospel not as a rebuke of Mary, but as an invitation for each of us to listen deeply to God's voice and respond with a brave, unreserved "yes."

Most important in life is not the new, nor the next, but the now, where now can be enough. Reflecting on the Feast of Saint Bruno and the semi-hermetic Carthusian tradition, Br. Curtis Almquist offers an antidote to our distraction-saturated world. He urges us to carve out daily spaces of silence and solitude to practice the presence of God in the present moment.

What we have to gain – a coming to know ourselves as we truly are, made in the image and likeness of God – is beyond price. Br. Lain Wilson reflects on Saint Francis’s renunciation as a call to let go of pride, self-sufficiency, and the divisions we create between ourselves and the rest of creation.

I would argue that Jesus took rejection with a grain of salt, and we must do the same. Br.Jack Crowley reflects on Jesus’ warning that his disciples will face rejection and encourages us not to take it personally or let old wounds turn into bitterness. Instead, we can keep reorienting ourselves toward God.

How hard it must have been for them – and how hard it is for us – to include and to be included: to include those who hurt us, by whom we feel betrayed; to be included by ones we have hurt, who hurt us, whom we see as other. Br. Luke Ditewig shows how embodying Christ's mercy calls us to look beyond familiar circles, honor the mystery of every person in silence, and receive wisdom even from the companions we would not have chosen.