Reflection: Happy New Year It feels good to write the numbers “2021” in the date line at the top of this reflection.
Christmas is behind us and we’re looking forward to this new year, hoping that it will be nothing like the last year. Some words from a currently popular song remind us: “And may the best of your todays be the worst of your tomorrows.” Another saying by Winston S. Churchill states: “If you’re going through hell – keep going!” Our fervent prayer is that the year 2021 turns out to be better than the tough year we’ve just endured. Maybe many of us thought that the final three quarters of 2020 felt like hell, but we’re still here and it doesn’t feel as bad now as it did in March/April – and in many of the months following them. In our Gospel Reading this week, the apostle John tells us that Jesus (the Word of God, made flesh) came into the world to shine his light and overcome our darkness. John's gospel begins where it should - in the beginning. This chapter is John’s version of the nativity story. He doesn’t regale us with angels, shepherds, or a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. Instead, he takes us right back to the beginning of the creation of the world: “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God.” He continues on by telling us that this “word” (Jesus), which had come into being, was the life and light of all peoples and it shone into the darkness and overcame it. We may feel like we’ve been wallowing about in darkness this past year, but John reassures us that Christ has been with us though all of our trials and tribulations. He was there in the beginning, is here now and will be with us forever more. God gives us his “word” (promise) that he will never leave us alone. As we start another year, I’d like to challenge you afresh to take a good long look at Jesus - by reading the book of John - one chapter a day (it’ll take 3 weeks) and see what God reveals to you in the words. I see Christmas as a signpost, drawing our attention - not to itself, but to what it is pointing at. We see signposts every day. Whether we’re walking about in a lovely bush setting, or out on a major highway, the signposts are there, assisting us to find our way. We can get so used to the “event” of Christmas, that when we focus on the preparations, it’s easy to become so busy that we forget to focus on what God is longing to point us to – the idea that, wrapped up in this baby Jesus, is his son who will grow into the man who’ll be recognised as the saviour of the world. In addition, he’s wanting us to embrace his light and love, thereby helping us to find our part in what he is doing in the world. The Lectionary readings for this week point us to the certainty of God. The prophet Jeremiah reassures the scatted remnants of Israel that their God will bring them all back to the land where they could “walk by brooks of water”. In a similar way, the psalmist talks of God strengthening the city of Jerusalem against their enemies and blessing the children within. When writing to the new Christians in the city of Ephesus, the apostle Paul tells them that, by believing in Christ, they will be “marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit” and that they are to be redeemed as God’s own people. This New Year is a great time to affirm that certainty, yet we’re so often uncertain of what’s ahead. We wonder: where is God in the events of our lives and in the world? Our journey through life causes us to live in the conflicts of certainty, uncertainty and mystery, yet it’s our faith that helps us to get through. As we get further into the New Year, I pray that our faith will grow and that we’ll move forward in the certainty of the knowledge that God has a plan for each of us. Our task is to talk to him regularly (in prayer) and try to determine just what our role in his kingdom is. If we don’t ask him what it is that we’re supposed to be doing, it’ll be hard for him to get us moving in the right direction.If all that sounds a bit complicated, it isn’t meant to. Just try slowing yourself down, quieten the external noises of the world and spend regular quiet times in prayer, asking God to help you understand the role he has in mind for you. The answers might surprise you, but I encourage you, whatever stage of life you find yourself in, to embrace the task wholeheartedly and serve him with joy.God the Creator, who brought the earth and the universe into being and, seeing that it was good, continues to create. The creator remains active, always seeking the best for all people, desiring that we may truly live full and fruitful lives. Sometimes it can be hard for us to see the good in disasters like drought, savage bushfires and viral pandemics, but the earth and God’s people usually manage to bounce back from these sorts of trials. Human spirit, community bonding and the care of those who are less fortunate than ourselves, shines through in testing times like these, helping to bring us closer together, in ways that we hadn’t imagined. No one wants these events to occur, but maybe we need a shock to the system occasionally, to remind us that we need to look after the planet and those who inhabit it. I pray that we may all play our part in God’s creation, continually giving thanks for his love and care for us. “Go into this new year with joy and wonder, shining the light and life of Christ in the world. May God give you courage, wisdom and hope, that you may live with boldness, serve with kindness and find joy in unexpected places. Amen.” Pastor Rick
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