Spencer LaJoye's Plowshare Prayer

Hey, JF family!

Today is the public release of the studio recording of “Plowshare Prayer,” which many of you know I originally wrote for a Juniper Formation prayer Gathering. What you might not know is that writing this song was such a pivotal moment for me because it felt like I was telling my absolute truth, with no filter (in a church context, no less!).

Writing and singing it made me feel so many things: anger, freedom, peace, grief, joy…it was almost as though my body was yelling, through the song, “LISTEN TO ME!” And when I did, I ultimately came to the decision to step away from church work for now. I had - have - healing and listening and tending to do. The timing of that decision coincided with my wife’s and my move to Boston, MA, so I said a gentle goodbye to the church communities I’d grown to love in Denver.

Right before I left, Jason said to me, “part of saying goodbye well is knowing you’re always welcome back.” It was an entirely non-toxic, open-armed “goodbye,” which is exactly the thing I cherish most about Juniper Formation: they (we) are more invested in the health and wholeness of actual human beings than in the perceived growth of a system.

There’s no cutting off; only letting go. There’s no shutting out; only welcoming in. There’s not even expectation; only invitation. So it is no wonder to me why “Plowshare Prayer” - this song that pushed me to invest in my own healing - came to be during my time with Juniper Formation. Makes total sense.

I hope you’ll listen to the song, and then listen to yourself.

I pray that you’re heard,

and I pray that this works,

Spencer

(You can find the song at ffm.to/plowshareprayer. If you live near Boston, MA, come say hi to me at a show! I keep those updated at spencerlajoye.com/shows. I'm enjoying a steady, "normal person" job/routine at the Museum of Fine Arts at the moment, but I'm planning a lot of outdoor concerts and a tour around the country this summer! So keep checking back!)