✺ The Monthly Mix ✺
December 2025: Grief, Hope, and the Best of 2025
Public Theology is based on the work of Zach W. Lambert, Pastor of Restore, an inclusive church in Austin, Texas. He and his wife, Amy Lambert, contribute to and moderate this account. Zach’s first book, Better Ways to Read the Bible, is now available wherever books are sold.
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We’re glad you’re here.
What we’re thinking about:
Grief. My (Amy’s) grandmother passed away a few days ago. She was our last living grandparent and the only one our kids got to know. I was able to see her a couple of times in the hospital and process my goodbye with her over the past two weeks, but it was still hard. I have a lot to learn about facing and processing grief; I’m hoping to tackle this topic more intentionally in 2026 as it is so often suppressed and spiritually bypassed in religious spaces. If you have any recommended resources on death, grief, etc, please send them my way. I’m excited to dive into J.S. Park’s As Long as You Need: Permission to Grieve.
Hope. 2025 was a rough one for so many of us. We don’t tend to get overly excited about “the new year” (there are no resolutions around here), but it is a good time to look back with grace and look forward with hope. What do you need to process from 2025? Where can you seek more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in 2026? Who can you invite to join your table, whether literal or metaphorical? When do you feel most at peace (and how can you actively pursue more of that)? We don’t have control over everything, but we can be intentional in how we spend our time and where we devote our attention.
Better Ways to Read the Bible. One of the brightest spots of our year was the release of Zach’s first book, Better Ways to Read the Bible! Since its release in August, we have heard countless stories of how this book is encouraging people to reclaim the bible as a means for healing and wholeness rather than a weapon of harm. It has been a joy and a gift to walk alongside all of you as we seek “better ways” of pursuing faith together.
Thank you for all of your love, support, and hype as we’ve launched this book into the world. We’re so grateful for this community and the way you have shown up for us.
