March 10th, 2026

I am in the Twin Cities this week for the start of my Spring semester at Luther Seminary. As part of this trip, I visited the memorials of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, the two victims of ICE that made international news in January. Being in the places where these two individuals lost their lives was incredibly powerful because in these memorials I glimpsed the Kingdom of God. It was built of flowers, teddy bears, candles, friendship bracelets, and notes left in memory of Alex and Renee.

​Whenever a community comes together after a tragedy, the Kingdom of God comes near. We saw it across America in the aftermath of 9/11. We continue to see it in Orlando after the Pulse Massacre. The Kingdom of God is simply the manifestation of God’s healing of Creation back to Shalom—back to the peace and wholeness we were created to be. And we are invited to be a part of this healing in the way we respond to sin and brokenness—to senseless violence, war, pollution, hate, and destruction. 

One of my assignments this week was to write a “mini-sermon” or a brief poem on a theological concept. Because the Kingdom was on my mind, I wrote the following piece. My hope is that it invites you into a new way of envisioning the Kingdom.


Cheers and peace,
Kaylee



The Kingdom of God

The Kingdom of God
Is not a place 
But a movement.

Its streets 
Not of Gold 
But cobbled in kindness 

Pathways of love 
From me to you.

The Kingdom has gates 
But they are rusted open. 
You see
They have never been closed.
They embrace every resident 
Because all are welcome. 

The Kingdom 
Is decorated 
With flowers from memorials 
Of Emmett Till
Renee Good
MLK
And Pulse’s Angels

Because the Kingdom is built
Brick on shining brick
By the ways humanity works for peace 
In response to its own brokenness. 

The Kingdom is fulfillment. 
The final triumph of love 
From Creator
Through Incarnate
In the Spirit

One divine 
in union with Their creation  

Shalom, at last
And forever.

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