Conversations on the Porch
Ancient Voices—Contemporary Wisdom
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
One summer afternoon, I was sitting on the porch dozing in the warm sun that shone through the screen. As I rocked gently and hummed along with the bees flitting about the magnolia flowers, I realized that I was not alone. A woman sat in the other chair, rocking in rhythm with me. I was shocked at first and thought that perhaps I was hallucinating from the heat. I found my voice and demanded to know who she was. We simply rocked a while longer. Then, somehow, I knew that she who identified herself as Eve had come to the porch to share her life and be a guide for my journey. After Eve’s visit, others came. Occasionally several women would come in a week. At other times, days or weeks would pass before another guest arrived. The women did not appear in the order that their conversations are recorded in this book. The order of Conversations on the Porch grew out of the chronology of the Old and New Testaments.
Sometimes I would go to the porch having been overwhelmed with the day. Once I was thinking about a friend who was having trouble finding a position that used all her skills and talents. As I was rocking, grieving for my friend, I realized that Leah was sitting with me, watching the sun set over the roofs of the nearby homes. Another time, I was questioning my own inner wisdom because people around me were challenging my decisions and giving me reasons for why I should do things differently. Lydia appeared and soothed my wounded spirit with her story. Over and over again, the women came to me, sharing their lives, offering their insights, and challenging me with new visions for how to live, what to care about, and how to use my passion and energy.
The women came from their places of power or powerlessness, with their strengths or vulnerabilities, and their successes and failures. They came to the porch to share their insights and guidance. These sacred visitors embraced me with their wisdom, their love, and their passion. They rocked in the chairs and asked that whoever would listen, listen. They are depending on us to hear their ancient voices as we move into our own renewed and expanded visions of life as people of God. They challenge us to embrace living as they did and to continue the conversations.
Formats
Book Details
Recognition Programs
About the Book
Author Beth Lindsay Templeton originally created her screened porch as a sanctuary for herself. With its shabby furniture, potted flowers, and tinkling wind chimes, the porch soon became a haven not only for her, but also for other women who craved a sacred refuge to nurture their spirits. It is in this way that powerful conversations with thirty women from the Bible came to Templeton’s pen; these women gracefully share their stories of faith so others might listen anew in their own worlds.
As different women visit Templeton on her porch, Scriptures come alive in fresh and insightful ways. The conversations she shares with Eve, Huldah, Mary, Lydia, and others not only address issues of women and of the world in general, but also demonstrate that biblical women’s stories and insights are as vital and important today as they were when their stories were first told. Conversations center on such common challenges as blame, forgiveness, grief, joy, conflict, sacrifice, trust, hope, courage, wisdom, and above all, living in the power of God’s love and grace.
Conversations on the Porch shares the refreshing and courageous voices of ancient women as they encourage others to embrace life as a child of God and continue the inspiring conversations.
About the Author
Beth Lindsay Templeton is a Presbyterian minister and community activist. As director of Our Eyes Were Opened, a poverty education program of United Ministries, she brings theological understanding and broad experience to helping others. She graduated from Presbyterian College and Erskine Theological Seminary. She currently lives in Greenville, South Carolina.