Merianna Harrelson

I am the Pastor of Garden of Grace United Church of Christ in Columbia, SC and the Director of Consulting at Harrelson.Co. I am always looking for a good cup of coffee and a great book.

Building Bridges

Shortly after we moved from Columbia, they began work on a bridge on Highway 378 . It’s still not completed. It’s been almost three years and as we have moved between the city where we lived and the city where we now live, we have watched the cranes slowly put a new bridge in place. …

Building Bridges Read More »

Birthdays and Celebrations

On Monday, we will celebrate five years with our daughter. There’s something about four-year-old preschool that feels so old, isn’t there? She has started to read the world around her, picking out sight words, familiar signs, and even surprises herself reading new words. It feels like it’s happening too fast! As we joined with friends …

Birthdays and Celebrations Read More »

Explorers

During the COVID shutdown, one of the daily practiced we implemented with our kids was a morning walk. We looked at signs that the season were changing. We tracked the morning light, but our favorite days were when we encountered a new creature. The pileated woodpecker would often interrupt our walks or the box turtle …

Explorers Read More »

Best Books I Read in 2023

Every year, I join the reading challenge on Goodreads. More often than not, I don’t reach my goal of reading 100 books, but last year I exceeded it. I credit this to our nighttime reading switching from picture books to chapter books. We are deep into Who Would Win, Magic Tree House, and Junie B. …

Best Books I Read in 2023 Read More »

A Year of Hope

Each year, I end the year reflecting on the word or phrase that has followed me throughout the year. I know this is backwards in some ways. Most people choose a word or mantra for the new year, but that’s never how it’s worked for me. Instead, as I move through the year, so too …

A Year of Hope Read More »

Waiting for the Center

Last night was the darkest night, the most time we will go without light for the whole year. Each day from here on out, we will gain just a little more light each day. Isn’t it interesting that we start gaining more light just as the Light of the World is about to come? As …

Waiting for the Center Read More »

Let Every Heart Prepare Room

When we decorate for Christmas, it take a little…rearranging. We have to move things around just a bit in order to prepare room for our Christmas tree. We have to stash some mugs and plates in the garage to prepare room for the Christmas dishes. All of these preparations make room for our house to …

Let Every Heart Prepare Room Read More »