16 Lessons from 2025
I love making lists of lessons. Sometimes I do them on my birthday, sometimes the new year. This year’s is (comparatively) short, but some big ones in here! Happy New Year! 1. Stillness is power.
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Repairing Tiny Crowns
Grief, repair, and a shepherd girl standing guard “She’s the reason I got this set for you,” my dear friend Phil said, carefully unwrapping the shepherd figure of the nativity set he had brought me as an installation gift. It’s an artisan set, and each figure is made from corn husks, which are softened and
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Introducing: Mini Consulting Packages
Focused Expertise for Maximum Impact Often, churches are looking to work with an expert in a targeted, specific way, without the six months of engagement or a bulky process. These mini consulting packages are designed to allow you the ability to work with an expert in the field of faith formation who will listen closely
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Praygrounds: Best Practices and a Report
Photo: Erika Giraud / Unsplash First Things First: What’s a Prayground? Prayground defined: A prayground is a designated area within a worship space where young children can engage in age-appropriate, worship-centered activities during the service. Equipped with materials such as children’s Bibles, worship aids, and props for “playing church,” a prayground invites children to participate
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487 Words on the Hidden and Obvious Treasures of the Art Institute of Chicago #500words
The Art Institute of Chicago has been a sacred place for me, ever since I was a student chaplain. After sitting with families as they processed their shock and grief after gunshot wounds, cancer diagnoses, and death, I needed a place that was completely different than the ER and the ICU. When we entertain guests,
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Master Resource List
Please see THIS link to a Google Document you can view or download. I change the links frequently, so come back often! TRACI SMITH MASTER RESOURCE LIST Updated March 4. 2025
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50 Lessons from 2024
2024 was a big year and there was a lot to learn! (There always is, right?) I often do these kinds of reflections around my birthday but this year, it felt more like a year-end kind of thing. This is a list of things I spent hours thinking about or writing about in 2024. Some
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Prayers and Practices for Challenging News Events
I”m not sure which challenging news event led you to this page, this time. Perhaps a natural disaster, or perhaps a human-made disaster. Whatever it is, deep peace to you as you minister to children, youth, and their families during this time. In Faithful Families: Creating Sacred Practice at Home, there is a whole chapter
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Protected: Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar — TBT Premium!
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Speaking Schedule
We would love to see you at any of these events! Please be in touch with any questions or to book your own event! 9/28/2024 — Chicago Presbytery Leadership Conference, Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary10/20/2024 — Preaching and Interactive Workshop at Deerfield Presbyterian Church 10/26/2024 — Faith at Home Workshop, First Presbyterian Church of Michigan City10/27/2024