Looking Back; Looking Forward

As we count the hours until a new year begins, we look with optimism toward the future. May this year be a year filled with goodness, joy, and hope. May it be a year of health and well-being. May it be a year of simple celebrations and discovery. May it be a year of generous service to others. May it be a year of  growth in study and prayer and contemplation. May it be a year of love for our neighbor - and a little for ourselves. May it be a year where God leads and we follow - closely.

Today, the prayer offered from church clergy is so beautiful I had to pass on to you.

Happy New Year!

 Friday | December 31

Rev. Darren Hensley

God of All that is, All that was, and All that will be,

Standing on the precipice of a new year, we pause and praise You for precious memories and new beginnings. Thank You for the many blessings bestowed upon us, and guide our steps as we turn the page to the next chapter of our lives.

Looking back over this past year, O Lord, we take note of triumphs and times of renewal, of achievements shared and relationships cherished, of opportunities to grow and to give. We recall, as well, confrontations, setbacks, pain, and loss – days and nights when we felt the weight of uncertainty, grief, and fear dragging us down. We’re grateful that through it all, You have provided us with everything we need. You have been with us, even, and especially, when we have felt most alone and vulnerable – when we reached out to You with an elemental longing and earnest desire for communion and deliverance. Thank You for surprising us in subtle yet sublime encounters of unsurpassed grace – moments when we discovered we were already in Your loving embrace long before we knew it.

Looking ahead to the new year, O Lord, open our hearts and minds, our eyes and ears, to the living hope that endures and sustains us. A hope that does not just appear when we feel ready but seeks us out whatever our circumstance and nurtures and fortifies us with Your presence in the very depth of our need. A hope that calls us to sacred work – the work of building connections, offering forgiveness, and extending kindness in places of our brokenness and in the everyday, ordinary moments that constitute our lives. Work we do not engage on our own, but through the encouragement and strength of the Holy Spirit.

Be with all who need Your tender care, O God. Keep vibrant our memories of the saints who live forevermore with You. As we go forth into 2022, may we offer all we have in service to You and so to one another in the love of Christ, in whose name we pray, Amen.