One Thousand Words

Welcome to Season 5 of "One Thousand Words - Stories on the Way!" This week, I felt like I didn't want to add to the noise, but instead to point to words and sounds that "make quiet." The post S5:E1 – Words the Make Quiet appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet teacher, poet, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings", Rex Bradshaw. Rex chose the song "Meet me at the Well" from the album and wrote a wonderful essay called "The Digger's Tale". In it, Rex explores the wells we all dig on our own that run dry, and a meeting with One who is himself the wellspring of Living Water. The post S4:E19 – Only the Lover Sings: Rex Bradshaw, “The Digger's Tale” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet educator, author, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings", Junius Johnson. Junius chose the song "That won't stop Him" from the album and wrote a gut-wrenching essay of the best kind called "All you have to do is die: the power of abiding in death". In it, Junius walks with us to the shadowed valleys of our hearts, where we discover Jesus is more than willing to meet us with his redeeming care. The post S4:E18 – Only the Lover Sings: Junius Johnson, “All you have to do is die: The power of abiding in death” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet writer, gardener, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings", Amy Baik Lee :) Amy chose the song "I See a Light" from the album and wrote a rich essay called "The Sound of Eucatastrophe". In it, Amy leads us in story as she goes looking for the ways Jesus, in the midst of our darkness, meets us with a sudden, unexpected turn towards joy from "beyond the walls of the world." The post S4:E17 – Only the Lover Sings: Amy Baik Lee, “The Sound of Eucatastrophe” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet artist, writer, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings", Adam R. Nettesheim. Adam chose the song "The Return of the Prodigal Son" from the album and wrote a hope-filled essay called "Learning to Walk Again". In it, Adam, a father himself, reminds us that Jesus has shown us the true heart of our Heavenly Father who takes joy in even our wobbly-est steps towards him. The post S4:E16 – Only the Lover Sings: Adam Nettesheim, “Learning to Walk Again” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet delivery nurse, writer, and essayist for “Only the Lover Sings” Jessie Todd. Jessie chose the title track of this project “Only the Lover Sings” and wrote a great essay called "Excavation”. In it, Jessie tells the story of her Scottish miner ancestors to offer us a picture of Jesus as one who goes digging for buried treasure: you and me. The post S4:E15 – Only the Lover Sings: Jessie Todd, “Excavation” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet... um... me! :) Surprise, I wrote an essay for my own book! I chose the song "The Heart of Our God" from the album and wrote an essay called "The Way Home". In it, I'm looking at the death of Jesus - asking not necessarily *how* it does what it does... but *what* does it do? Was it necessary or just a loving gesture? Does the cross really have anything to do with my actual life? The post S4:E14 – Only the Lover Sings: Matthew Clark, “The Way Home” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet teacher, editor, podcaster, author, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings" Heidi White. Heidi chose the song "Trying to get my heart back" from the album and wrote a fantastic essay called "Embracing a New Name: St. Photini". In it, Heidi fills us in on the Samaritan woman's story after meeting Jesus, and shares how his face gently coaxes our hearts out of bondage to fear, giving us a bright, hopeful name. The post S4:E13 – Only the Lover Sings: Heidi White, “Embracing a New Name: St. Photini” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet singer/songwriter, poet, author, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings" Adam Whipple. Adam chose the song "Everything But You" from the album and wrote a great essay called "In the Darkness of Noontide". In it, Adam sits with us beside Jacob's well as we reach the end of ourselves and assures us there is another source of life beyond self-esteem, beyond ourselves in Christ's love. The post S4:E12 – Only the Lover Sings: Adam Whipple, “In the Darkness of Noontide” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet writer, editor, children's book reviewer, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings" Théa Rosenberg. Théa chose the song "The Well" from the album and wrote a wonderful essay called "Below the Tideline". In it, she tells the story of a walk with her daughter beside the vast ocean, reflecting that Jesus brings us those unknowable waters in a way we can know: as a Well. The post S4:E11 – Only the Lover Sings: Théa Rosenburg, “Below the Tideline” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet author, lecturer, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings" Lanier Ivester. Lanier chose the song "Every Beauty" from the album and wrote a responsive personal essay called "Eggardon Hill". In it, she invites us to join her and her husband Philip as they make a trip through the English countryside looking for confirmation of God's goodness and love in the beauties they encounter. The post S4:E10 – Only the Lover Sings: Lanier Ivester, “Eggardon Hill” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Meet poet, pastor, and essayist for "Only the Lover Sings" Andrew Roycroft. Andrew chose the song "Looking for you" from the album and wrote a responsive narrative essay called "A Stranger on the Road". In it, he imagines what it's like to be led down the paths of despair shackled to the legion voices of shame and accusation. How could that story end well? It can't unless a "Stranger" comes seeking us where we are hopelessly lost. The post S4:E9 – Only the Lover Sings: Andrew Roycroft, “A Stranger on the Road” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week on the podcast, I'll share an excerpt from the introductory essay to the new book, tell you more about the project, and read a favorite related psalm to close. Over the next weeks, the amazing essayists who wrote for the book will share excerpts from their essays written in response to the songs and the woman at the well. The post S4:E8 – Only the Lover Sings: Matthew Clark – I want to see what she saw appeared first on Matthew Clark.

I just released my own book and album "Only the Lover Sings" last Friday, but this week I want to tell you about another book: "Wild Things and Castles in the Sky: A Guide to Choosing the Best Books for Children" by Square Halo Press. I'll share the essay I wrote for the book about George MacDonald's "Sir Gibbie". The post S4:E7 – The Fragrance of the Blessed Realm appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, writer, poet, photographer, and editor Amelia Friedline asks, "Are quiet little thumbnail sketches of my particular corner of the universe worth anything when the world is rent by war, injustice, and all other kinds of evil?" Find Amelia at www.innocenceabroad.com The post S4:E6 – Amelia Freidline, What is Poetry for? appeared first on Matthew Clark.

It is costly to love, isn't it? But, because of what Christ has revealed about reality, we can afford it. This is what I'm looking at this week on the podcast. Also: I've got a new single releasing this Friday, March 25th! Visit matthewclark.net and click the pre-save on Spotify button! The post S4:E5 – What superabundance affords us appeared first on Matthew Clark.

It's no small thing to keep doing the small things. Last night, our small group started reading Richard Foster's "Celebration of Discipline" and I was reminded that willpower will disappoint us, but keeping at the little practices that keep us close and open to the Lord, cultivates healing by keeping us in contact with the Life of our life. The post S4:E4 – Like a tree planted by the streams appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Recently, a friend on facebook asked "why is it so hard to apologize?" Well, that got me thinking, "Yeah! Why does it feel so scary to admit we're wrong and as for forgiveness?" I know that feeling, and this week I'll share some thoughts on and close with an original song off my "Beautiful Secret Life" album. The post S4:E3 – Why is it so hard to apologize? appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, I'm sharing a concept I learned in counseling that has stuck with me, and some reflection on what makes change and healing possible. How do we grow? I'll end with a favorite G.M. Hopkins poem. In other news: the first single from my new album releases March 4th! Stay tuned! The post S4:E2 – Open System/Closed System: Welcoming New Hope appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Welcome to Season 4 of One Thousand Words! This week, I'll be sharing about one of the surprising last things Moses did before he died and the rabbit trail it led me down, and I'll read a few lyrics from one of my favorite old Rich Mullins' songs. Subscribe and share, if you enjoy this episode, and sign up for my newsletter over at matthewclark.net. The post S4:E1 – The Furious Love Song of a Dying Man appeared first on Matthew Clark.

What is a face? What does it mean for someone to face us, for us to have to face ourselves, and how does facing and being faced by Jesus change us? It is scary to turn and face Jesus, because we're afraid God doesn't really love us. But the one who dares to look finds out the shocking good news and comes away singing, “God has made his face to shine upon us!” Seeing Jesus see us as his beloved, changes the way we see ourselves. The post S3:E30 – Season 3 Finale: The Light of a Face appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, guest essayist Maribeth Barber will explore what Wendell Berry means when he implores us to “do something that won't compute”— arguing that it's less about rebelling against the culture for rebellion's sake, and more about living and loving well. Maribeth's debut novel "Operation Lionhearted" releases 10/13/21, find out more: maribethbarber.com The post S3:E29 – Maribeth Barber, The Defiance of Laughter appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week we'll welcome a guest essayist from Norway, Erling Rantrud. A trained gardener, husband, father, and pastor in Sandefjord, Norway, Erling will share about God's life-giving invitation to both His work and His rest in a place where heaven and earth meet. And he'll sing a benediction for us in his native tongue! The post S3:E28 – Erling Rantrud, There Was a Garden appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Jesus says, “The Father is seeking worshipers who worship in spirit and truth.” What does that mean? What kind of relationship does God hope to have with us? I'm looking at Psalm 88 and John 4 for clues about life, God, and real connection in love. How do the (often uncomfortable things) God chooses not to edit out of his book demonstrate his vulnerability and invite us to be vulnerable with him? The post S3:E27 – Showing Up in Spirit and Truth appeared first on Matthew Clark.

I just finished reading Stanley Hauerwas' “The Character of Virtue: Letters to a Godson”. In it, he describes the virtues as the characteristics formed in us by practices that accompany a particular narrative in which we have been located. How then does inhabiting the Christian story transform us as we bear that story out in our very lives - our bodies, decisions, and so on? The post S3:E26 – Your Place in the Story, Pt. 4 – Virtues: The Heartbeat of Reality appeared first on Matthew Clark.

In Part 3 of "Your Place in the Story", having already talked about the necessity of church participation, I'm looking at how saturating ourselves in the Scriptures and in Prayer gives us the wisdom to joyfully and beautifully improvise... to enact this storyline on the stage of our lives alongside others, to jam along with the song God is singing over us, or to join the Trinity in their conversation of holy love. The post S3:E25 – Your Place in the Story – Here's the Script; Have Fun! appeared first on Matthew Clark.

How do we find our place in the Story Jesus is telling? Beginning last week, I started a series of episodes exploring that theme. In part one, I talked about how, broadly speaking, liturgies are simply a human phenomenon (even apart from religion) that work a story into our bones. And this week, I’m jumping off from there exploring how the unnoticed narratives we involve ourselves in name us - for good or ill. Names are how we understand our essential relation to things, the truth of our being. The post S3:E24 – Your Place in the Story, Pt. 2 – A Beautiful New Name appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Everybody does liturgies - inside and outside the church. I’m thinking of a liturgy as any shared practice or discipline that situates us within a particular narrative that gives our life context and meaning. Liturgies provide language, images, events, and storyline. They work that stuff down into our bones, until whatever story we’re practicing becomes the measure for everything. The next few weeks, I'm exploring things that help us find our place in The Story Jesus is telling. The post S3-E23 – Your Place in the Story *or Anybody Want a Peanut? appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, we welcome singer/songwriter Nicole Kelley. Her disarming and wise way of talking about Jesus made me think how much I’d love to get her to share something here, and this week she’ll be talking about Peter’s faith and failures and how Jesus’s steadfast grace gives us permission to let go of regret and "press on toward the prize" as Paul says. Nicole's new album "Canyon Wide" is available everywhere online. Visit her website: www.nicolekelleymusic.com The post S3:E22 – Nicole Kelley, “Peter and His Personal Record Swim Time” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Sometimes we forget that God works through regular people to get things done. The Bible didn’t just magically appear out of nowhere; God invited real people throughout history to join in his long redemptive work. In the Bible, we see evidence of it. This week, I’ll share how I’ve experienced that personally, and some thoughts on how God provides for us through Creation, wisdom, and friendship. The post S3:E21 – God’s Friends Getting Stuff Done appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, I wanted to read a letter I wrote almost exactly one year ago today. I was feeling all the dismay and bewilderment of that moment as lockdowns began, and I wrote this piece for the Spring 2020 Issue of The Cultivating Project. The Lord can enter into and redeem absolutely anything, if he can transform the cross and the grave. So, though I don’t see how, I know he’s not dismayed or bewildered. Jesus will bring life and eucatastrophe in a thousand little ways as we continue our Pilgrimage toward the Joy set before us. The post S3:E20 – Dear Friend, A Letter appeared first on Matthew Clark.

...But wait, there's more! It's still Easter, or Easter-tide, all the way till Pentecost on May 23rd! So, today I'm sharing two interrelated readings on the theme of Easter Joy. One from Alexander Schmemann that I'll read, and one from Lewis's "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" read beautifully and joyfully by Kirstin Jeffrey Johnson. We may weep, yes, but since Christ has come we have a "secret strength" and participate in a "deeper magic". This changes everything. The post S3:E19 – Easter: Secret Strength and Deeper Magic appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! Well, friends, thank so much for walking through this week with me. I've really needed it, personally. In this last Holy Week episode, Amy Baik Lee will read her piece "In the space of a single word", Son of Laughter (Chris Slaten) will sing "The Gardener", Kirstin Jeffrey Johnson will read John Updike's poem "Seven Stanzas at Easter", and Brian Brian will close us with a prayer. "One Thousand Words" will be back as usual every Monday. The post S3:E18: Holy Week: Easter Sunday appeared first on Matthew Clark.

What do we do with this strange, suspended Saturday? This in-between time, this "Nondum" or "not-yet" time, after Jesus's death but before his Resurrection? For his first followers there was no certainty of what was to come. Surely, this silent Saturday is a part of Jesus's gift to us, too, right along with Friday and Sunday? I'll talk a little about that, read a poem, Taylor Leonhardt will share an original poem and her song "Lights gone out", and Brian Brown will close us in prayer. Join us again tomorrow on "One Thousand Words". The post S3:E17 – Holy Week: Saturday, The Gift of the Quiet In-Between appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This is Crucifixion Day, Good Friday. This is a hard day, because Jesus’s brutalized face, faces us with the truth about ourselves - asking us to face him with our true faces, and discover that an unexpected new life is possible in Him. Amy Lee will share "The Blood-bought gift of loneliness", I'll sing a song, and Brian Brown will read T.S. Eliot's "East Coker IV" and close us in prayer. Join us every day this week on "One Thousand Words". The post S3:E16 – Holy Week: Good Friday appeared first on Matthew Clark.

It's Maundy Thursday. "Maundy" means mandate or command, and this is the day Jesus washes his disciples' feet and mandates that they love as he has loved them. The Last Supper takes place today, after which Jesus prays at Gethsemane in anguish as his disciples fall asleep. Then he is betrayed with a kiss and arrested. Today, Chris Slaten (Son of Laughter) will sing for us, we'll hear from Amy Baik Lee who will also read a G.M. Hopkins poem, I'll sing a song, and Brian Brown will close us in prayer. Join us every day this week. The post S3:E15 – Holy Week: Maundy Thursday appeared first on Matthew Clark.

On this Wednesday of Holy Week, I wonder how lonely Jesus felt? No one really gets what he's doing. But then Mary breaks the jar of costly perfume. She gets it somehow, and is promptly attacked by the others for her "foolishness". Today, we'll look at Mary's beautiful act, Taylor Leonhardt will sing a Mission House song, my friend Grace Andrews will read George Herbert, and Brian Brown will close us in prayer. Join us every night this week on "One Thousand Words". The post S3:E14 – Holy Week: Wednesday, Mary Does a Beautiful Thing appeared first on Matthew Clark.

On this Tuesday of Holy Week, I'm trying something different. I'm sharing a fictional imagining of Jesus as he camps outside Jerusalem, remembering the promises made to Abraham so long ago and how they are about to be fulfilled, finally in himself. I'll also share a song, Malcolm Guite will read a sonnet, and Brian Brown will close us in prayer. Join us every day this week as we walk our story together with Jesus. The post S3:E13 – Holy Week: Tuesday, Remembering Abraham appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This Monday of Holy Week, we continue walking with Jesus to the cross. So far he's wept over Jerusalem, entered to short-lived praise, and now he makes his way to the City's broken heart, the Temple. I'll share a reflection and a song, Malcolm Guite will recite a sonnet, and Brian Brown of The Anselm Society will close us in prayer. Join us every day this week. The post S3:E12 – Holy Week: Monday, Cleansing the Temple appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This is Palm Sunday. Our Story begins today with Jesus, having resolutely turned his face toward Jerusalem, entering that City to shouts of praise that he knows will quickly change to shouts of condemnation. But He knows exactly what he is doing; he has come to die. I'll read a passage from Frederick Buechner and sing a song, Malcolm Guite will read one of his sonnets, and Brian Brown will pray from the Book of Common Prayer to close. Join me and my friends every evening this week for this special Holy Week series. The post S3:E11 – Holy Week: Palm Sunday appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Yesterday around a friend's Sunday Dinner table, I tasted "Luella's Rice" for the first time and saw that it was good. My friend's old family recipe brought something good from the past into the present and awakened a hungry hope for a future feast. This week, I'm wondering if the church is like a kitchen where we apprentice, through Scriptural doctrines, practices, and fellowship, learning to cook up good things, setting the table for a coming Feast? The post S3:E10 – Old Family Recipes appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, I'm remembering something Eugene Peterson said that showed me how we take on a lot of pressure to perform like machines; but we’re not machines, we’re people. Christianity’s emphasis on the grace revealed in Jesus - who, at the crucifixion, puts the locus of human identity on the fact of our belovedness, means we are precious completely independent of our performance, productivity, or achievement. The post S3:E9 – Man or Machine? (Or How to Relax a Little) appeared first on Matthew Clark.

A dear friend of mine was asked, “What is the most lovely and beautiful future you could possibly imagine that the Lord might provide for you?” This week, I'm asking if the imagination might be a place where we keep pictures of what life could be like, and how good relationships, stories, and art can help ‘hang hopeful pictures’ on the wall for us. And I’ll end with Holly Ordway's sonnet "A Sudden Goldfinch" as a benediction. The post S3:E8 – Redecorating the Imagination with Hope appeared first on Matthew Clark.

This week, I’m thinking about how we are called to work in faith, because we rarely are able to see how our part fits meaningfully into any larger story. Life and love can feel like a waste of time, but even at our lowest points God is at work in and through us, bringing his Great Tale to life in this world. I’ll share a little from the Book of Job and one personal story of how Jesus has encouraged me to show up but leave the results to him. The post S3:E7 – None of my business appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Welcome to special guest essayist, Leslie Anne Bustard! Leslie is a mom, wife, writer, and a publisher with Square Halo Books. She'll be sharing an original poem and essay. Regarding her essay, Leslie says, "When I was a homeschooling mom of three daughters, I believed I could manufacture, through the right schedule or the right books, perfect days of learning and loving. But God had deeper lessons of his long view work in his children for me to learn." Find Leslie online: facebook.com/leslie.bustard The post S3: E6 – Leslie Bustard, “He Who Began a Good Work” appeared first on Matthew Clark.

David Lyle Jeffrey says, "God is a poet" and quotes John Donne, saying ours is "'a very figurative and metaphorical God.' How he speaks, not just what he says, becomes an important measure of who he is." This week, I'm thinking about how poetry, and the arts in general, are practiced by Jesus, and given to us as a means of making our imaginations more roomy for Himself and the things His love makes impossibly possible. The post S3:E5 – Poetry and Impossible Possibilities appeared first on Matthew Clark.

A few days back, my friend Amy Lee introduced me to the Greek New Testament word "splagchnizomai", which is a kind of gut-wrenching ache of compassion and longing for someone. That helped me think about my newest release "Gone Too Long". So, this week, I'm ruminating on "splagchnizomai" as it relates to the story behind that song, and I'll share the song itself to close the episode. The post S3:E4 – Song and Story: Gone Too Long appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Last night, my friends and I that meet weekly started reading one of my favorite books - Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton. This is one of the main books that I go back to again and again when I get stuck and can’t believe in joy. There are few books I find as refreshing. So in this episode, I’m thinking about how easy it is to get stuck in a world that’s no bigger than the globe of my own head. How I need a revelation - I need someone to open the windows and let in some fresh air. The post S3:E3 – Open the Windows, Let In Some Air appeared first on Matthew Clark.

On this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, I'm wondering about the ingredients that make seemingly impossible healing possible - how did Dr. King point to a Resource greater than any human as he proclaimed a dream for humanity? I'll close with two prayers written by Dr. King. All of that somehow relates to apple pie, obviously, right? Please subscribe, comment, and share. Thanks! The post S3:E3 – MLK Day: How to make an apple pie appeared first on Matthew Clark.

Welcome to Year Three of the podcast! I'm excited to get things started up for this season. In this episode, I'll share one of my "quirky loves", and explore three analogies - jazz improv, storytelling, and sailing - as we talk about how to discern reality in the midst of so much confusion. Please subscribe, comment, and share. Read the essay text: www.matthewclark.net/onethousandwords The post S3:E1 – A Brawl in the Jazz Club appeared first on Matthew Clark.

The title of this season's finale is a play on words: "Radiant" as a noun is the source of light, and "radiant" as an adjective is whatever is being illumined by that Radiant. Jesus is Creation's Radiant, the Light and Logos who makes it radiant. This is too often a lost connection that must be remade again and again, since without it, the wisdom of God that signals life's dignity is broken. The post S2:E31 – Season 2 Finale, “The Radiant” appeared first on Matthew Clark.