This is week twenty-six for the afteramen. devotional.
Six months. Half a year. Every Sunday at seven, without fail.
The readership is not as wide as I hoped it would be by now. Social media has been neglected more than intended. There are weeks where I wonder who is actually out there on the other side of this.
And then I remember what God told me at the beginning. Write like there are thousands of you. So I do.
I write every word like the room is full. Because I believe it is. And because the ones who are here right now are exactly who are supposed to be here right now.
I am proud of us. Proud of me for showing up. Proud of you for doing the work of sitting with discomfort, with accountability, with the pain that comes with growing, with becoming. That is not small work but it often starts that way.
Zechariah 4:10 says it plainly: Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.
He doesn’t wait for the work to be completed. Or celebrated. Or to hit a milestone.
God is not embarrassed by your small beginning. He rejoices to see the work begin.
Everything God does starts small. Even Jesus.
The most powerful and most questioned thing that has ever happened in human history started as a baby. Born in a stable. Announced to shepherds. Visited by wise men following a star so small in the sky that most people would miss it entirely. The salvation of the world started as something you could hold in your hands.
If you dismissed it because of its size, you'd have missed it.
When God tells you to do the small thing, He has a large thing in mind.
I didn't know when I sent the first afteramen. email that I would still be here twenty-five weeks later. I didn't know who would stay. I didn't know what it would become. I still don’t.
And speaking of things that start small enough to hold, I want to share something I’ve been working on for you. Well, for us.
Remember mail? Like real mail. The kind you had to walk to the mailbox for, that made you a little curious before you even got your hand on it?
There was something special in handwritten letters and invitations printed on beautifully designed paper and packaging. Something I’d like to bring back.
So I'm bringing back the magic and the mystery of mail with the afteramen.
Make It A Moment Sensory Card Deck™️.
What is it?
- A deck of 60 cards (+ 4 orientation cards)
- Mailed to you in sets of 5, once a month for 12 months
- A short note from me tucked inside every envelope
- Playing card size; small enough to carry in your purse or your back pocket.
- Beautiful enough to leave somewhere you will see them every day.
- At the end of 12 months, I mail you a custom deck holder, free, to keep them all in one place.
What’s inside?
Your deck is organized across the five senses - taste, touch, sight, sound, smell. Each of our senses is a door to the presence of God, and the card deck gives you the keys.
- ‘Tables’ cards (taste) — How you feed yourself matters. The table is more than a meal.
- ‘Tactile’ cards (touch) — Your body holds what your mind will not say. Learn to listen.
- ‘Scenes’ cards (sight) — What surrounds you is shaping you. Choose it on purpose.
- ‘Harmonies’ (sound) — Reclaim what you hear and say.
- ‘Scents’ (smell) — The most direct path to memory, peace, and presence.
Every card has four parts.
A name — specific, sensory, evocative. A moment.
An affirmation — a declaration in your own voice, written in first person, that you carry through the month.
A practice — something you actually do. A recipe. A ritual. A prompt. Always doable today.
A reflection question — one question worth sitting with at the bottom of every card.One card. One sense. Five minutes. One step closer to giving faith a place in your every day.
ow to use it.
There is no wrong way. But here are three ways you could use the cards.
- Daily anchor. Pull one card each morning. Let the affirmation, practice, and prompt be your devotional for the day.
- Weekly focus. Choose one category for the week and focus on that card each day. Select a new card for each week of the month.
- What you need now. Overwhelmed? Start with ‘Tactile’ cards. Distracted? Try ‘Scenes’ cards. Disconnected? ‘Harmonies’ cards. Depleted? ‘Tables’ cards. Scattered? ‘Scents’ cards.
here is no wrong entry point. Begin anywhere.
Getting started.
- Your first envelope arrives with Set #1 (five cards) — one from each sense category — plus four orientation cards to help you get started.
- Then you’ll receive one set per month, for twelve months, until the deck is yours completely.
FAQs
What if I miss a month?
You will not. Once you are in, you are in. Your set of cards will arrive each month.
Is this only for people with a religious/faith practice?
The deck is rooted in afteramen.’s theology of embodiment: the belief that God meets us in our whole lives, not just our quiet times or worship meetings.
You do not need your spiritual life figured out to begin. You are allowed to simply begin.
Can I give this as a gift?
Yes. Gifting options will be available when you sign up.
Will you restock after the initial order window?
Limited quantities. If you want in on the first mailing, you can sign up beginning August 11.
It started as a small idea. Like most things God has His hands on.
I wonder…
What small, faithful, unspectacular thing have you been doing consistently that you have not given yourself credit for?
What would you do with that thing if you believed that what it is now is just the beginning?
Regardless of its size, what signals are you getting from your body that you’re doing the right thing, in the right place, at the right time?
I love you.
Coi Marie
Affirmation:
I do not need a crowd to begin. I do not need a platform to show up. I do not need proof that it is working to keep going. I am faithful before the breakthrough. I am consistent before the crowd. I am already in the middle of something God is rejoicing over.
If this landed for you, pass it on. First time reading? Catch up at afteramen.org.
