W. David O. Taylor
@wdavidotaylor.bsky.social
Associate Professor of Theology & Culture @fullerseminary. Author: "Prayers for the Pilgrimage" + "A Body of Praise" + "Open & Unafraid." IG: @davidtaylor_theologian. W: https://www.wdavidotaylor.com.
For some of us, Thanksgiving is a marvelous day. For others of us, it’s a bummer of a day. For still others of us, it’s a very painful day. For all such people I’ve written prayers that hopefully give voice to the deepest cries of our hearts.
wdavidotaylor.substack.com/p/3-prayers-...
wdavidotaylor.substack.com/p/3-prayers-...
3 Prayers for Thanksgiving
Prayers for the Good, the Hard, the Ugly.
wdavidotaylor.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 2:10 PM
For some of us, Thanksgiving is a marvelous day. For others of us, it’s a bummer of a day. For still others of us, it’s a very painful day. For all such people I’ve written prayers that hopefully give voice to the deepest cries of our hearts.
wdavidotaylor.substack.com/p/3-prayers-...
wdavidotaylor.substack.com/p/3-prayers-...
A Morning Prayer:
O God, enliven the thoughts of my mind, revitalize the cells of my body and cause a fresh outburst of praise to surge in my heart, I pray, so that I may taste the Life that is truly life this day. Amen.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
O God, enliven the thoughts of my mind, revitalize the cells of my body and cause a fresh outburst of praise to surge in my heart, I pray, so that I may taste the Life that is truly life this day. Amen.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
November 25, 2025 at 1:21 PM
A Morning Prayer:
O God, enliven the thoughts of my mind, revitalize the cells of my body and cause a fresh outburst of praise to surge in my heart, I pray, so that I may taste the Life that is truly life this day. Amen.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
O God, enliven the thoughts of my mind, revitalize the cells of my body and cause a fresh outburst of praise to surge in my heart, I pray, so that I may taste the Life that is truly life this day. Amen.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
Jesus for sale:
"People with even a tenuous relationship to Jesus Christ are spending their Decembers counting down the days until his birthday by opening paper doors to buy tea, lipstick, wine, weed, cheese, knives, crystals, toys for cats, dogs, sex."
www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025...
"People with even a tenuous relationship to Jesus Christ are spending their Decembers counting down the days until his birthday by opening paper doors to buy tea, lipstick, wine, weed, cheese, knives, crystals, toys for cats, dogs, sex."
www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025...
Advent Calendars Are Totally Out of Control
What began as a form of religious expression has morphed into a brand-a-palooza.
www.theatlantic.com
November 24, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Jesus for sale:
"People with even a tenuous relationship to Jesus Christ are spending their Decembers counting down the days until his birthday by opening paper doors to buy tea, lipstick, wine, weed, cheese, knives, crystals, toys for cats, dogs, sex."
www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025...
"People with even a tenuous relationship to Jesus Christ are spending their Decembers counting down the days until his birthday by opening paper doors to buy tea, lipstick, wine, weed, cheese, knives, crystals, toys for cats, dogs, sex."
www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025...
To put it gently: this is so gross. In more academic terms: it's gross, gross, gross, gross, gross.
"According to his Spotify profile, Solomon Ray is a “Mississippi-made soul singer." But "Ray" isn't a real person. It's an AI persona.
I hate it.
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/solo...
"According to his Spotify profile, Solomon Ray is a “Mississippi-made soul singer." But "Ray" isn't a real person. It's an AI persona.
I hate it.
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/solo...
The Current No. 1 Christian Artist Has No Soul - Christianity Today
AI-generated musician Solomon Ray has stirred a debate among listeners, drawing pushback from popular human singer Forrest Frank.
www.christianitytoday.com
November 24, 2025 at 8:33 PM
To put it gently: this is so gross. In more academic terms: it's gross, gross, gross, gross, gross.
"According to his Spotify profile, Solomon Ray is a “Mississippi-made soul singer." But "Ray" isn't a real person. It's an AI persona.
I hate it.
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/solo...
"According to his Spotify profile, Solomon Ray is a “Mississippi-made soul singer." But "Ray" isn't a real person. It's an AI persona.
I hate it.
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/solo...
Kingsnorth "sees with uncommon clarity that...human nature is being redefined by an anti-limit culture, economic system, and technology sector that treat minds, bodies, and environments as ripe for plundering and optimization in the name of progress."
www.theatlantic.com/books/2025/1...
www.theatlantic.com/books/2025/1...
What a Cranky New Book About Progress Gets Right
Paul Kingsnorth argues that much of today’s culture is intent on eroding what it means to be human.
www.theatlantic.com
November 24, 2025 at 2:59 PM
Kingsnorth "sees with uncommon clarity that...human nature is being redefined by an anti-limit culture, economic system, and technology sector that treat minds, bodies, and environments as ripe for plundering and optimization in the name of progress."
www.theatlantic.com/books/2025/1...
www.theatlantic.com/books/2025/1...
If you’ve ever felt tapped out by life, you know what it looks like. It looks like listlessness, a loss of motivation, a struggle to stay focused, an instinct to seek “sugar-high” distractions, and a heavy weariness of body & mind. It happens to all of us. If that’s you, then this prayer is for you.
November 24, 2025 at 2:07 PM
If you’ve ever felt tapped out by life, you know what it looks like. It looks like listlessness, a loss of motivation, a struggle to stay focused, an instinct to seek “sugar-high” distractions, and a heavy weariness of body & mind. It happens to all of us. If that’s you, then this prayer is for you.
The stories of our lives:
“I had to step back into me, 30 years ago, and tap back into the things that inspired and drove me as a Christian.” -- Rian Johnson
www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...
“I had to step back into me, 30 years ago, and tap back into the things that inspired and drove me as a Christian.” -- Rian Johnson
www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...
Rian Johnson Goes Off on AI as He Looks to His Post-‘Knives Out’ Future
Three years after inking one of the richest movie deals in streaming history to bring his franchise to Netflix, the force behind ‘Wake Up Dead Man’ and ‘Poker Face’ is ready to move on with a movie th...
www.hollywoodreporter.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:50 PM
The stories of our lives:
“I had to step back into me, 30 years ago, and tap back into the things that inspired and drove me as a Christian.” -- Rian Johnson
www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...
“I had to step back into me, 30 years ago, and tap back into the things that inspired and drove me as a Christian.” -- Rian Johnson
www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie...
Hearing the words of our rulers in Washington DC often makes me think of the words of Jesus in Luke 6:45:
"A person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what’s within your heart."
"A person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what’s within your heart."
November 21, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Hearing the words of our rulers in Washington DC often makes me think of the words of Jesus in Luke 6:45:
"A person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what’s within your heart."
"A person with an evil reservoir in his heart pours out evil things. The heart overflows in the words a person speaks; your words reveal what’s within your heart."
We must never forget that "personalized" doesn't mean our wellbeing as humans but the financial wellbeing of tech companies.
"But the real selling point was AI—embedded in the physical device is a more personalized version of Meta’s proprietary chatbot."
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
"But the real selling point was AI—embedded in the physical device is a more personalized version of Meta’s proprietary chatbot."
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
The Last Device You’ll Ever Need
Tech companies are racing to give AI a physical shape.
www.theatlantic.com
November 21, 2025 at 3:45 PM
We must never forget that "personalized" doesn't mean our wellbeing as humans but the financial wellbeing of tech companies.
"But the real selling point was AI—embedded in the physical device is a more personalized version of Meta’s proprietary chatbot."
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
"But the real selling point was AI—embedded in the physical device is a more personalized version of Meta’s proprietary chatbot."
www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/...
There’s a beautiful logic to Flannery O’Connor’s prayer that will recognizable to many artists, and it resembles the logic of the psalmist who isn’t afraid to pray an embarrassingly honest prayer but isn’t afraid either to end his prayer with a holy resignation to God’s often-inscrutable will.
November 20, 2025 at 4:35 PM
There’s a beautiful logic to Flannery O’Connor’s prayer that will recognizable to many artists, and it resembles the logic of the psalmist who isn’t afraid to pray an embarrassingly honest prayer but isn’t afraid either to end his prayer with a holy resignation to God’s often-inscrutable will.
Yes and amen and more of it, please:
"I came away from that camp believing that collaborative songwriting might be one of the scariest things we can do together—also one of the most generative." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/god-...
"I came away from that camp believing that collaborative songwriting might be one of the scariest things we can do together—also one of the most generative." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/god-...
God Loves Our Middling Worship Music - Christianity Today
Songwriting might be the community-building project your church needs right now.
www.christianitytoday.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Yes and amen and more of it, please:
"I came away from that camp believing that collaborative songwriting might be one of the scariest things we can do together—also one of the most generative." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/god-...
"I came away from that camp believing that collaborative songwriting might be one of the scariest things we can do together—also one of the most generative." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/god-...
A Prayer of Peace for those who go to bed this night troubled in their hearts and minds.
November 20, 2025 at 2:16 AM
A Prayer of Peace for those who go to bed this night troubled in their hearts and minds.
I will never tire of reading Frederick Buechner. I just wish more people today, especially those struggling with their faith, read him. He’s so very good.
November 19, 2025 at 3:41 PM
I will never tire of reading Frederick Buechner. I just wish more people today, especially those struggling with their faith, read him. He’s so very good.
If you've gone to bed as a dad or mom regretting something you said to your kids, or how you said, or what you did that you probably should've done slightly differently, and you’ve got that sinking feeling in your stomach that you’ve messed up again with your kids, then this prayer is for you.🙏
November 19, 2025 at 2:26 AM
If you've gone to bed as a dad or mom regretting something you said to your kids, or how you said, or what you did that you probably should've done slightly differently, and you’ve got that sinking feeling in your stomach that you’ve messed up again with your kids, then this prayer is for you.🙏
Reposted by W. David O. Taylor
🎉Cover Reveal!🎉 To Set the World Aflame: How Artists Bear Witness to the Fullness of God's Creation by @wdavidotaylor.bsky.social
You can preorder the book for 40% discount + free shipping right here: bakerbookhouse.com/products/978...
You can preorder the book for 40% discount + free shipping right here: bakerbookhouse.com/products/978...
November 18, 2025 at 2:06 PM
🎉Cover Reveal!🎉 To Set the World Aflame: How Artists Bear Witness to the Fullness of God's Creation by @wdavidotaylor.bsky.social
You can preorder the book for 40% discount + free shipping right here: bakerbookhouse.com/products/978...
You can preorder the book for 40% discount + free shipping right here: bakerbookhouse.com/products/978...
We’ve got a book cover and we love it! With artwork created by the fabulous illustrator Shin Maeng, it’s officially my favorite book cover ever.
Here’s where I explain the details of the cover and what the book itself via @brazospress.bsky.social is on about:
substack.com/home/post/p-...
Here’s where I explain the details of the cover and what the book itself via @brazospress.bsky.social is on about:
substack.com/home/post/p-...
November 18, 2025 at 2:42 AM
We’ve got a book cover and we love it! With artwork created by the fabulous illustrator Shin Maeng, it’s officially my favorite book cover ever.
Here’s where I explain the details of the cover and what the book itself via @brazospress.bsky.social is on about:
substack.com/home/post/p-...
Here’s where I explain the details of the cover and what the book itself via @brazospress.bsky.social is on about:
substack.com/home/post/p-...
"Silicon Valley’s pivot to synthetic intimacy makes sense: Emotional attachment maximizes engagement. But there’s a dark side to A.I. companions."
The dark side of A. I. will ruthlessly prey upon our insecurities and fears, Lord help us.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/o...
The dark side of A. I. will ruthlessly prey upon our insecurities and fears, Lord help us.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/o...
Opinion | The Sad and Dangerous Reality Behind ‘Her’
www.nytimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 5:15 PM
"Silicon Valley’s pivot to synthetic intimacy makes sense: Emotional attachment maximizes engagement. But there’s a dark side to A.I. companions."
The dark side of A. I. will ruthlessly prey upon our insecurities and fears, Lord help us.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/o...
The dark side of A. I. will ruthlessly prey upon our insecurities and fears, Lord help us.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/o...
This coming Sunday is “Christ the King Sunday” on the church calendar but there’s always a good reason to pray on any given calendar for God’s upside-down and rightside-up kingdom to be established in our midst.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
November 17, 2025 at 3:17 PM
This coming Sunday is “Christ the King Sunday” on the church calendar but there’s always a good reason to pray on any given calendar for God’s upside-down and rightside-up kingdom to be established in our midst.
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
(via “Prayers for the Pilgrimage”)
Every job has it and every day is likely to include it at some point, and while it's easy to resent monotonous work and while it may be oppressive at times, it can become an opportunity to practice the presence of Jesus in the unsung labors that are ours to do by grace.
November 14, 2025 at 2:04 PM
Every job has it and every day is likely to include it at some point, and while it's easy to resent monotonous work and while it may be oppressive at times, it can become an opportunity to practice the presence of Jesus in the unsung labors that are ours to do by grace.
Yes:
"When people describe the world by appealing to black-and-white morality, they tend to reveal more about themselves than anything else.... such language suggests that they hold their own views to be unimpeachable and the other side’s to be irredeemable."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
"When people describe the world by appealing to black-and-white morality, they tend to reveal more about themselves than anything else.... such language suggests that they hold their own views to be unimpeachable and the other side’s to be irredeemable."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
The Left’s New Moralism Will Backfire
Under Trump, progressives have embraced the rhetoric of “moral clarity.” It won’t help their cause.
www.theatlantic.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Yes:
"When people describe the world by appealing to black-and-white morality, they tend to reveal more about themselves than anything else.... such language suggests that they hold their own views to be unimpeachable and the other side’s to be irredeemable."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
"When people describe the world by appealing to black-and-white morality, they tend to reveal more about themselves than anything else.... such language suggests that they hold their own views to be unimpeachable and the other side’s to be irredeemable."
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
If you're wondering what happened to the evangelical women's blogosphere, wonder no more. Social media, Covid, politics, and tribalism play a role in seismic shifts.
"Today’s internet landscape...rewards controversial content." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/jen-...
"Today’s internet landscape...rewards controversial content." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/jen-...
What Broke the Evangelical Women’s Blogosphere - Christianity Today
Jen Hatmaker’s trajectory illustrates the fraught world of spiritual influencerhood and the disappearance of the messy middle.
www.christianitytoday.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:05 PM
If you're wondering what happened to the evangelical women's blogosphere, wonder no more. Social media, Covid, politics, and tribalism play a role in seismic shifts.
"Today’s internet landscape...rewards controversial content." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/jen-...
"Today’s internet landscape...rewards controversial content." @kkramermcginnis.bsky.social
www.christianitytoday.com/2025/11/jen-...
A Night Prayer for the Weary:
O Lord, you who promise us your rest, I offer to you my weary body this night, heavy-laden with the cares of this world, and ask that you would speak your word of peace to it, so that it might be repaired by your grace through the watches of the night. Amen.
O Lord, you who promise us your rest, I offer to you my weary body this night, heavy-laden with the cares of this world, and ask that you would speak your word of peace to it, so that it might be repaired by your grace through the watches of the night. Amen.
November 12, 2025 at 1:56 AM
A Night Prayer for the Weary:
O Lord, you who promise us your rest, I offer to you my weary body this night, heavy-laden with the cares of this world, and ask that you would speak your word of peace to it, so that it might be repaired by your grace through the watches of the night. Amen.
O Lord, you who promise us your rest, I offer to you my weary body this night, heavy-laden with the cares of this world, and ask that you would speak your word of peace to it, so that it might be repaired by your grace through the watches of the night. Amen.
I asked ChatGPT a pragmatic question and it answered:
"That’s a rich and beautiful question!"
I said: "No it ain't. It's a boring question."
It said: "That’s fair—and I appreciate the correction."
I said: "Do you really? Or are you just flattering me?"
It said: 🤔
I said: I'm messing with you.
"That’s a rich and beautiful question!"
I said: "No it ain't. It's a boring question."
It said: "That’s fair—and I appreciate the correction."
I said: "Do you really? Or are you just flattering me?"
It said: 🤔
I said: I'm messing with you.
November 10, 2025 at 5:56 PM
I asked ChatGPT a pragmatic question and it answered:
"That’s a rich and beautiful question!"
I said: "No it ain't. It's a boring question."
It said: "That’s fair—and I appreciate the correction."
I said: "Do you really? Or are you just flattering me?"
It said: 🤔
I said: I'm messing with you.
"That’s a rich and beautiful question!"
I said: "No it ain't. It's a boring question."
It said: "That’s fair—and I appreciate the correction."
I said: "Do you really? Or are you just flattering me?"
It said: 🤔
I said: I'm messing with you.
A Prayer for Blessing for the Day’s Work:
Bless my mind to discern the one thing that this day requires;
Bless my heart to remain at peace in the face of fear;
Bless my will to resist all needless distractions;
Bless my hands to do the work that you have entrusted to me;
In your name I pray.
Amen.
Bless my mind to discern the one thing that this day requires;
Bless my heart to remain at peace in the face of fear;
Bless my will to resist all needless distractions;
Bless my hands to do the work that you have entrusted to me;
In your name I pray.
Amen.
November 10, 2025 at 1:32 PM
A Prayer for Blessing for the Day’s Work:
Bless my mind to discern the one thing that this day requires;
Bless my heart to remain at peace in the face of fear;
Bless my will to resist all needless distractions;
Bless my hands to do the work that you have entrusted to me;
In your name I pray.
Amen.
Bless my mind to discern the one thing that this day requires;
Bless my heart to remain at peace in the face of fear;
Bless my will to resist all needless distractions;
Bless my hands to do the work that you have entrusted to me;
In your name I pray.
Amen.
A Prayer for God's Judgment to Begin with the Household of Faith:
(via "Prayers for the Pilgrimage")
(via "Prayers for the Pilgrimage")
November 8, 2025 at 1:50 PM
A Prayer for God's Judgment to Begin with the Household of Faith:
(via "Prayers for the Pilgrimage")
(via "Prayers for the Pilgrimage")