THE COVENANT COMPANION
Features
Making God’s Name Known and Love Shown
Dominique Gilliard on why he believes evangelism and justice belong together and where he sees hope in a searching world.
A Little Corner of Peace
A mother’s desire for a place where her daughter could belong has grown into a ministry helping children with special needs and their families find a place to belong.
The Conference That Came First
Eight churches met in a Minnesota town before there was a Covenant to belong to. What became the Northwest Conference is still going, 142 years later.
Training the Latino Leaders the Covenant Needs
The president of CHET shares why the Covenant-affiliated Latino seminary matters more than ever—and what it will take to strengthen it.
A Single, Full Life: What the Church Doesn’t Always See
A call for the church to see single people as whole rather than waiting, and to build communities where they are truly known.
The Church Is Open
With no children and no volunteers left after the pandemic, a North Minneapolis church restarted Vacation Bible School anyway, praying for twenty kids to show up.
Featured story
Women Who Stayed: Covenant Witness in Solidarity
News
Covenant Companion Recognized for Excellence
The Covenant Companion received multiple honors this year from the Evangelical Press Association and Associated Church Press, recognizing excellence in writing, visual storytelling, podcasting, and digital publishing across print and online platforms.
The Covenant Is Welcomed into the National Association of Evangelicals
In August the National Association of Evangelicals welcomed the Evangelical Covenant Church as one of three denominations to join the organization.
After the Spokane Fires
The evacuation orders have been lifted. In Spokane, two congregations are settling in for the long work of rebuilding with their neighbors.
Curtis D. Peterson
In the kingdom of God, greatness is never measured by how far one can rise above others. Rather, greatness is recognized by how deeply one can love and serve others. By kingdom-of-God standards, Curtis Peterson was a great man!
North Park Theological Seminary Receives $8 Million Grant to Launch One Covenant Community
One Covenant Community is a five-year effort to strengthen pastoral leadership across the Covenant, and North Park has three open positions to support the work.
Gather 2026: The Work of One Another
Last week, delegates gathered to mark fifty years of ordaining women, share stories of God’s faithfulness, welcome new churches, and ordain and commission new ministers.
Announcements
Request for Nominations: Superintendent of the Midsouth Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church
The Midsouth Conference has begun the prayerful process of discerning who God is calling to serve as our next superintendent.
Steve Wong to Become New Coordinator of Adult Discipleship
Rev. Dr. Steve Wong will join the denominational team of the Evangelical Covenant Church as the part-time coordinator of adult discipleship on October 1.
The Covenant Is Welcomed into the National Association of Evangelicals
In August the National Association of Evangelicals welcomed the Evangelical Covenant Church as one of three denominations to join the organization.
Angela Yee Named Interim Director of Covenant Servant Leadership
Angela Yee has joined the Serve Locally team as interim director of Covenant Servant Leadership. An ordained Covenant minister, she brings decades of experience of equipping lay leaders and a passion for helping them lead with confidence and Christ-centered purpose.
Swanson-Draheim Nominated for Second Term
Tammy Swanson-Draheim has been nominated to a second term as president of the Evangelical Covenant Church.
President’s Letter to Church Annual Meetings
Local Covenant churches may download the Congregational Annual Meeting Letter from President Tammy Swanson-Draheim.
Resourcing The Evangelical Covenant Church
Commentary
Beyond Clenched Fists
Righteous anger, witnessed through injustice on the ground, becomes a spiritual invitation to act rather than remain with clenched fists.
Facets of Glory: How Culture Helps Us See God
A worship leader is told to put her shoes back on before the service because “that’s just how we do things around here.” Celeste Cecchi on what we can learn about culture and the church.
Faithfulness Over Influence
A spy series about performing for unseen watchers got Jelani Greenidge thinking about how we perform our faith.
A Burglary and a Lesson in Love
A burglary tested Mike Guerrero’s habit of helping strangers in need—but didn’t stop him from loving them.
Sometimes I Fail Judi
After nearly fifty years of marriage, Mike Guerrero writes that caring for his wife during the long good-bye of Alzheimer’s is a privilege. But sometimes, he confesses, he fails her.
Basement Therapy
Dana Bowman brings us into the cluttered basement of a difficult season, where job loss, anxiety, and overwhelm collide. Through dust, spiders, and a rediscovered telescope, she traces how small acts of courage can open space for hope when answers are still unfolding.
Featured story
Arts & Culture
Making God’s Name Known and Love Shown
Dominique Gilliard on why he believes evangelism and justice belong together and where he sees hope in a searching world.
The Church Is Open
With no children and no volunteers left after the pandemic, a North Minneapolis church restarted Vacation Bible School anyway, praying for twenty kids to show up.
Honoring Our Past While Naming Our Wounds
The immigrant church was home. That’s what makes questioning it feel like betrayal.
Every Swollen Joint
Reading Lyndsey Medford’s account of a hurricane and an autoimmune flare, Eliza Stiles found the same grief in both—and a case for why our healing and the world’s are bound together.
Pearls, Arrows, and Grace
Amy Muia’s A Desert Between Two Seas traces the ripple of one boy’s drowning across generations of afflicted, often violent characters in post-mission Baja California.
Life or Death Circumstances
Adapting content from his new book, Don’t Despise Our Youth, Covenant pastor David A. Washington makes the case that the youth crisis gripping urban America is, at its core, a church problem. He proposes that we stop ministering to young people and start raising them up to minister to each other.
Home Altar
Week of September 6, 2026
A devotional guide written by Covenanters, inviting you to take time each day for God’s word, quiet meditation, and prayer.
Week of August 30, 2026
A devotional guide written by Covenanters, inviting you to take time each day for God’s word, quiet meditation, and prayer.
Week of August 23, 2026
A devotional guide written by Covenanters, inviting you to take time each day for God’s word, quiet meditation, and prayer.
Week of August 16, 2026
A devotional guide written by Covenanters, inviting you to take time each day for God’s word, quiet meditation, and prayer.
In Memoriam
Gregory Mesimore
Retired Covenant pastor Greg Mesimore died August 18, 2026. He was 71.
Jolene Bergstrom-Carlson
Retired Covenant pastor Jolene Bergstrom-Carlson died August 23, 2026, in Chicago, Illinois. She was 82.
Curtis D. Peterson
In the kingdom of God, greatness is never measured by how far one can rise above others. Rather, greatness is recognized by how deeply one can love and serve others. By kingdom-of-God standards, Curtis Peterson was a great man!
Sylvia Helene Marley
Sylvia Helene Marley, wife of the late Covenant minister Fred Marley, died June 24, 2026, in the Seattle area. She was 86.
Robert A. Larson
Retired Covenant minister Robert A. Larson died June 28, 2026, in Batavia, Illinois. He was 102.
Harold Larsen
Retired Covenant minister Harold Larsen died June 5, 2026, at home in Port Ludlow, Washington. He was 95.
Margaret Wickstrom Keysor
Ingeborg “Margaret” Wickstrom Keysor, surviving spouse of Rev. Charles W. Keysor, died May 30, 2026, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She was 101.
Jim Sedore
Retired global personnel Jim Sedore, the first Covenanter sent Mongolia, passed on June 29, 2026, at home in Washington. He was 74.
Love the Cov
Podcast
Sitting Down with Dany Flores and Metzli Doles
In this episode of Love the Cov, Dany Flores and her daughter Metzli share their intergenerational partnership in ministry, reflecting on how their shared commitment to faith, family, and justice shapes their lives and work.
Sitting Down with Harold Spooner and Peter Sjoblom
In episode 4, Harold Spooner and Peter Sjoblom share their journeys in urban ministry and racial reconciliation within the Covenant, reflecting on leadership, justice, and the legacy they hope to leave for future generations.
Sitting Down with Henry and Jelani Greenidge
In episode 3, Jim Sequeira speaks with Henry and Jelani Greenidge about Henry’s pioneering work in planting a truly multiethnic church back in 1988, Jelani’s experiences growing up in that diverse congregation, and their reflections on the state of the multiethnic church today.
Beyond Clenched Fists