Enemy Pie
Dear Savannah and Sutton,
You know I love children’s books. A delightful one is “Enemy Pie” by Derek Munson. This is the story of how a young boy’s enemy becomes a friend. Maybe this should be required reading for every adult.
-Dad
Inside Out Lectionary Letters
Year A - 4th Sunday in Lent (Texts, Art, Hymns)
Readings for March 15, 2026
1 Samuel 16:1-13 / Psalm 23 / Ephesians 5:8-14 / John 9:1-41
This particular psalm would certainly be included in a list of the most familiar passages of sacred literature. It is poetic, inviting, and filled with beautiful images and symbols. It does not have a list of complaints, nor a list of requests. It just makes statements of trust and the basis for that trust. The two primary metaphors are God as a shepherd (verses 1-4) and God as a host (verses 5-6).
The perspective of all of these Lectionary Letters is to consider what scripture is saying concerning our inner life. In addition, this week in the gospel reflection we introduced the idea of active imagination. Let’s use our imagination again to consider the inner life as reflected in the words of Psalm 23.
Verse 1-2. Transport yourself in your imagination to a green meadow, a park, or a trail. Stop and rest. Sabbath is not about a day of the week, but about a spiritual practice of renewal. What parts of your emotional life are exhausted? What parts have been working overtime to protect your hurts, or to keep your anxiety at bay. With gratitude for their hard work, give them a chance to rest, to breathe, to compose.
Verse 3. Move to the quiet waters of the unconscious. Acknowledge the depths you have yet to explore. This isn’t a race to inner health, but rather being present for the work that emerges as we are ready. Restoration requires an investment of time, and time is essential to its work.
Verse 4. In the shadows, lurk the unknown and the barely known parts of the self. And it’s often the barely known that generates the most apprehension and fear. But there is a divine voice within that prods, guides and protects. It knows the way.
Verse 5. There are so many inner conflicts, sparked by enemies that seem to beat you down. The psalmist invites us to imagine a table where we share a meal with all of these antagonists. There might be a part of you that has been imprinted by a parent with the message, “I’m not good enough.” Or an experience that formed a wound inside that is kept hidden out of shame. Then there are the inner enemies that speak with a message of guilt or failure or fear. At the table of enemies we share the most delicious pie and allow healing, understanding and grace to overflow.
Verse 6. All of these parts live in the same inner house, and every room of the house becomes a space for understanding, insight and integration. Welcome to the mansion of prayer.