8 New Soundtracks for Your Prayers: Curated Playlists To Light *Your* Way

Music for family milestones, ordinary moments, & more (And a prayer for the sadness we hold, too)

How are you, really? October blues have been a real thing for me. When I feel this way, I remember the heaviness will pass and there is light in the world, even when I don’t see it.

I also light as many candles as is safe with four kids and two dogs in my house…and I listen to a lot of music.

When I finished the To Light Their Way manuscript, I celebrated by creating a Spotify playlist. It ended up being about 400 songs and was just, well, a bit overwhelming. So I never shared it.

But now that To Light Their Way has made its way out into the world, and I’ve been hearing about how you’re praying these modern liturgies and integrating these prayers in your lives, I had an idea:

A Spotify playlist for each section of To Light Their Way.

Part 1: Prayers for Family Milestones (Featuring Ben Folds, Penny and Sparrow, The Porters Gate, Arcade Fire)

Part 2: Prayers for Ordinary Moments (Featuring Mumfortd & Sons, Ben Rector, John Mark McMillan, Drew Holcomb, Audrey Assad, Sleeping at Last)

Part 3: Prayers for Times of Transition (Featuring Iron & Wine, JJ Heller, Rain for Roots, Us the Duo, The Beatles)

Part 4: Prayers for a Weary World (Featuring Liz Vice, Jon Foreman, Johnnyswim, The Lumineers, All Sons & Daughters)

Part 5: Prayers for the Parenting Journey (Featuring Joy Williams, Sandra McCracken, The Avett Brothers, The High Women, Ingrid Michaelson)

Part 6: Prayers for Nuturing Faith & Character (Featuring Lauren Daigle, Urban Doxology, Morgan Harper Nichols (who endorsed To Light Their Way!)

Part 7: Prayers for Holidays & Holy Days (Featuring The Brilliance, Sufjan Stevens, Page CXVI, Sarah McMillan) (I’ll likely be splitting this into a few different ones so stay tuned for a special Advent/Christmas list soon.)

Part 8: Breath Prayers (Instrumentals for you to pray with.)

Simply click the links above to add them to your Spotify account. (Yes, there are eight unique playlists in all!) You’ll also find the embedded links at the bottom of this email. There are around 40 songs per playlist right now.

I’m sharing them all with you first to thank you for allowing me to take up space in your inbox. I’ll be releasing these gradually in the next few weeks on social media. They’ll be living playlists I will continue to mix up & edit.

You’ll hear a scattering of sacred & secular. A blending of genres and covers. A combining of new and nostalgic. I tend to skew indie/folk in my music preferences, but I hope there's something for everyone here. (My husband says I like to listen to sad covers of happy songs, and…he’s not wrong.)

I hope you find warmth and welcome in these songs. May they speak to your heart as you reflect on what it is to show up and raise kids to love God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength — and love their neighbor as an outpouring of love for themselves.

I hope these songs & sounds act as soundtracks to your dirty, messy, holy lives.

Supply Chain Problems Are Real

So, you may have been hearing about supply chain issues. They’re super real and affecting books like whoa. That is why my book is sold out online at Target and Barnes & Noble. It’s because of supply chain delays. (Amazon is on top of the game & stocked with plenty if you want to jump-start your gift-giving or add it to a wishlist!)

One thing that can help me out? If you’ve received a copy of To Light Their Way: A Collection of Prayers & Liturgies for Parents, would you please leave a quick rating/review? That really helps new authors like me beat the algorithms.

Here’s the link for Amazon.

Here’s the link for Goodreads.

Here’s the link for Barnes & Noble.

Holding Space With You

Whether you’re living your best life or having a bit of the October blues, I hope that these playlists & prayers help you feel a little less alone.

May God’s light guide you, even in the darkness.

Kayla

To Light Their Way Playlists