Happy New Year!!  It is incredibly quiet as I sit in my office this New Year's Day contemplating what to share at the beginning of a "brand new year."  Even that phrase has gotten me into trouble when someone who was in the midst of grief and pain interpreted it as an anticipation that her year would be filled with excitement and joy, when she could see only pain and devastation.  I don't pretend to know what the New Year will hold, but I do know that it is "a brand new year," which will contain its share of both joys and sorrows.  How we respond to them is up to us. 

 

One way is to remember that God is present and at work in all things and to give thanks to Him at all times and in all places; searching for His presence and direction in all that comes our way.  Giving thanks always seems more important this time of year as we acknowledge all that others do for us.  Some even seem to hinge their giving on receiving an acknowledgement for what they have done. 

 

 

Pastor Berge spoke of New Year's Resolutions in his Sunday sermon, (yes, I went to church).  He said "Go ahead and make them.  We all hope that things will get better; that this year will be better than last."  But don't be too surprised when you fail to keep them!  We do want things to be better:  our relationships, our jobs, our finances, our health, and we often begin a new year with resolve to see that things change.  But then, life happens, and before you know it we're right back into the "same old grind."  Nothing much happens in our strength alone.  God is the One who can and does "make all things new."  Just ask anyone who is recovering from an addiction!!

 

So, as we begin this brand new year, my prayer for you is peace, contentment, and joy in knowing the One who is faithful in the face of our failure and who will make "all things new," beginning each and every day of the New Year He has given us.

 

Peace and Love,