Pastor’s Blog

Keep up with Susie Grade’s latest musings on life in Denver, Spirituality, and her vision for Platt Park.
(Please note the following links will forward you to her external blog)

You cannot ignore what is under the surface
Denver Water has been digging up the streets around the church for what feels like forever. In reality, it has been going on for close to a year. This digging underneath the surface is in order to address something that needs attention. They have been digging in order to remove and replace old, lead pipes […]
How do you feel about Lent?
I wonder, what are your feelings about Lent? What did your church tradition teach you about Lent? Was that something you were told “the Catholics” did to try to earn salvation? Was that something “liturgical churches” did to try to shed a few bad habits? Was Lent the time of year for people to give […]
A word on relational ruptures
We are in a season of the year that the church has long referred to as Epiphany. One pastor describes it like this: “The season of epiphany is a reminder to the church of her vocation to face outward, toward the other, to share the Light of Christ.” — A.J. Sherrill But the truth is, […]
Crickets & Coins
The call to follow Jesus is not just about what we do, it’s also about who we become. Perhaps the most important thing God is doing in your life is not what he is doing through you but rather what he is doing in you. The scriptures say that people look at the outward appearance […]
Taylor Swift is leading us in lament
“When I stopped trying to block my sadness and let it move me instead, it led me to a bridge with people on the other side.” … I learned that sadness does not sink a person; it is the energy a person spends trying to avoid sadness that does that.” ― Barbara Brown Taylor I […]
The leaves are so vulnerable
I am sitting in my chair looking at the trees outside my window. They are bursting with vivid colors, yellow and red and every shade of green and orange. It strikes me that the leaves are so vulnerable. In all their glory they are about to die. Just the slightest breeze and so many come […]
Stay soft — it looks good on you.
We’ve been hosting this group in our home recently. It is made up of people who have been in church groups for decades. They have all experienced change, loss, betrayal, pain, and the sadness that comes when the community does not live up to our expectations of it. They have all been let down, disappointed, […]
Casting Bread Upon the Water
This past week was Rosh Hashanah, a Jewish holiday that kicks off ten days of naming and releasing our sins – both those that we have done and those that have been done to us. I love that there is an entire community worldwide that is pausing to take inventory of their lives, to name […]
You are the light of the world
Imagine you have just arrived in New York City. You are looking forward to a few days of museums and shows and dining out at some of the world’s best restaurants. You land at the airport, hop an Uber to your hotel, but just as you are pulling up to your hotel something strange happens […]
Living into community
Have you ever received a phone call that changed the trajectory of your life?  I bet everybody could tell of a time when a phone call came that changed your world – at least a little bit. Sometimes it is good news, you get a job offer, or receive the news of the birth of […]

"It is in the process of being worshipped that God communicates His presence to people." – C.S. Lewis