Psalmtember & Marcus Hong

Ah, September, you enchanting month! It’s that time of the year when we desperately try to grasp onto the fading warmth of summer while eagerly embracing the most charming season of all – autumn (if you’re lucky enough to experience all four seasons). In many corners of the United States, September marks the return to school – a fresh start, a rekindling of connections, and a return to that familiar circle of friends, colleagues, and a home away from home, distinct from our summer retreats.

Now, let me introduce you to our enthusiastic friend, Marcus Hong, who’s declared a month ago, “It’s that time again! Just a little over two weeks from now, we’ll be stepping into September. And you know what that means – it’s time for #PSALMTEMBER!”

Have you ever wondered what Psalmtember is all about and how you can hop on board this Spirit-led journey? Well, wonder no more because I’m here to spill the beans on how to join in the fun! And, to make things even more exciting, I share some delightful image snippets of our dear friend Marcus Hong on Instagram.

So, let’s dive right in and uncover the magic of Psalmtember together! 🌟📖✨

DESCRIPTION OF PSALMTEMBER (by Marcus Hong)

“Each year, I love to spend a month making art inspired by the Psalms. I have been doing this in October, to parallel the drawing prompt challenge known as “Inktober.” In 2022, I decided to move Psalms art back a month and do “Psalmtember” instead! This actually works better for two reasons:

1) Psalmtember actually sounds more like September;

2) there are 30 days in September, meaning that I can evenly divide up the 150 Psalms into 5 sets of 30. So, if I do this for 5 years, I will have made art with all of the Psalms.

I’m surprisingly ahead this year, so I would love to put out this invitation. Join me! The prompt list is in the image. I’ve also included it in the text above I took the time to choose words that stood out to me from each Psalm already. But other words may stand out to you! Or you may try to make art that represents the wholeness of the Psalm.

No matter what, if you’d like to join, I encourage you to read the text of the whole Psalm each day, consider what emotions it stirs up in you, choose a medium that speaks to you, and make some art! Folks have painted, used ink, drawn with colored pencils, taken photographs, written haikus, and much more. Choose what stirs delight in you! If you want to use a hashtag, so we can all see what we’ve made, use #psalmtember2023.”

What’s even more delightful is that several congregations across the country have already jumped on the PSALMTEMBER bandwagon, alongside about 20 individuals that Marc is personally acquainted with.
And guess what? It’s never too late to join in on the fun! If not this year, there’s always next year. Plus, for those of us who might consider ourselves artistically clumsy (myself included), maybe this is the perfect opportunity to hone our creative skills, ensuring we can wholeheartedly participate next time around.

Happy PSALMTEMBER! 🍂🎨✨