Fermata Mar 4, 2022: Rest in Preparation for Lent

Fermata is the weekly newsletter describing some of the past week’s highlights from Notes of Rest, which is my spiritual retreat ministry that interweaves text, music, and questions for the sake of cultivating stillness, introspection, and creativity in communities so that all may rest. I'd love to host a Notes of Rest for your church, seminary, or affinity group. Feel free to reply to this email to start the conversation!

Notes of Rest for Grace Farms

Hi everyone,

This week I have the privilege of hosting Notes of Rest at Grace Farms Foundation, a foundation in Connecticut whose interdisciplinary humanitarian mission is to pursue peace through five initiatives — nature, arts, justice, community, and faith — and Grace Farms, a SANAA-designed site for convening people across sectors. I'm excited to create a space of reflection and stillness with a group of leaders as we center on the relationship between rest and home.

This past Sunday I hosted a session at First United Methodist Church of Arlington Heights outside of Chicago, and we had a wonderful time thinking about resting, stillness, and building. Here's what Senior Pastor Melissa Earley had to say about our time in Exodus and Deuteronomy: Julian's leadership was well received. I've had many positive comments about the content, his musicianship, and his style. Notes of Rest worked well for us as an ending to a series on prayer and as a transition toward Lent. It was also well timed given world events. 

As we move towards the cross during this Lenten season, I pray that you're able to receive the gift of stillness from the One who gave up his life so that we might rest forever in God.

May The Lord grant us the ability to receive and gift notes of rest today, for salvation has come and is coming.

abundantly,
Julian