Happy New Year!

We have seen by now all the lists of best and worst and have considered resolutions or not. The Christmas tree is down, the Christmas pudding is eaten or in the disposal and the holidays are behind us, and yet. And yet, we do still have much of 2015 ahead of us. We are at the clean slate of a new year. Wasn't it just yesterday we were worried about the turn of the century and the millennium disaster which wasn't. We find ourselves 15 years later in a world which seems even more unstable. And yet. 

And yet, I am filled with hope, awe even at the possibility of a shift in our world, a shift from boundaries and borders to global connection and caring. Despite the reality of terrorists attacking Charlie Hebdo, despite the threats of North Korea and despite the reality of war in so many hot spots on our globe, I am filled with hope. For I trust in life, in the mysterious power of God to bring forth life out of darkness. My hope is founded in the reality of people like you, who care, who commit to living life with loving kindness. And so despite all possible evidence, I am filled with hope and am in awe at this good life. 

May you enter this new year boldly, trusting that God is at your side with a hand ready to catch you when you stumble, when the world falters. May you look to the future with hope and know that God's dream is lived out through you. 

See you Sunday,

Beth