A Christmas Letter from Sacred & Secular

A brief note of thanks and reflection at the end of the year

Dear friends,

Christmas this year feels very different to me.

After having to step away from full-time ministry in 2023 because of ill health, I spent some time feeling lost, learning to come to terms with chronic illness, and adjusting to a life I hadn’t planned for.

This year, though, something has shifted. Instead of dwelling on what has gone before, I find myself deeply grateful. Writing has slowly become a place of renewal for me, a way of reconnecting with God and others. After a year of writing on Medium, starting Sacred & Secular feels like a small but hopeful step, and I’m genuinely grateful that you’ve joined me right at the beginning.

Thank you for being here.

My hope for this newsletter is simple: to offer thoughtful daily reflections. The kind you might read in a quiet moment during the day, something that helps you pause and notice the sacred threaded through ordinary life. I’m sure it will continue to develop over time, but the commitment itself will remain the same. I’ll keep showing up, and I’ll keep writing.

I’m especially thankful to those of you who’ve chosen to support this work financially. Your generosity makes this daily practice possible and means more than I can express in words.

Please do not hesitate to reach out — whether to suggest a topic, ask a question, or simply say hello. It’s been great to begin getting to know some of you.

However you spend this Christmas season, I pray that it brings moments of rest and quiet joy. May your heart find contentment, and may you continue to notice the sacred woven through the secular, day by day.

With thanks,

Paul