Well, we made it! To what exactly, I am still trying to figure out.

The end of 2020. The season of Epiphany. The beginning of the vaccine roll-out. January 2021.

Yes – to all of the above.

Not to linger in the “what was” category too long, but we also made it into the Christmas season – which we are still enjoying until January 6th. For a world that is always ready to jump into what is next, I am always happy to linger in the season of Christmas. Yes, Christmas trees are already boxed up in some homes and laying in gutters outside other homes, but I am happy to leave our tree up just a little longer. For all of the preparation to get to Christmas, I like to live in the season as long as possible. A manger will always represent the coming of the Savior to a world in need and I am grateful for the opportunity to kneel just a bit longer in the stable holding out hope against hope that this year more and more people will come to know the power and promise of our God who comes to us in the baby Jesus.

For soon enough, we will move on. The star, though bright in the night sky, will lose its luster and the story of Jesus will move quickly from birth in a manger, to a 12-year-old in the temple, to a baptism at the Jordan River around age 30. And from there we move into the stories of miracles, parables, healings, and the 40 days of Lent that will carry us into Holy Week and the last days of the life of Jesus all the way to the cross.  If only the coronavirus vaccine distributed as quickly as the story of Jesus from birth to death and life again takes place through our every Sunday readings. Life, death, resurrection.

Our world is also reeling from the completion of 2020 and experiencing the same cycle of life, death, and resurrection. Certainly, for many of us, the arrival of the vaccine and its continued disbursement means resurrection, though all of us are aware of someone who currently has the coronavirus, or had the coronavirus, or died from the coronavirus, or knows someone who grieves the loss of someone due to the coronavirus. The power of death wreaks havoc in these days, but God’s promise of an empty tomb holds its grip on us with the strength of every faithful heart that trusts in God’s gentle care.

2021 also brings the hope of resurrection of who we are as a people of faith, a people of this nation, and a people who are interconnected with and dependent on our brothers and sisters around the world. I have heard myself say, and have heard others say, “When we return to normal,” and my hope is that we will not so much return to but instead, grow, evolve, transform, progress to a new normal where there is value and respect for the dignity and humanity of every life and a respect for the gift of creation allowing us to share in the beauty and the joy of all of God’s creation together. If 2021 can offer anything – it is that hope. Something new. A time, a place, and a commitment to not treat our most vulnerable peoples as objects to be discarded but invaluable children of God.

• For every elder isolated in a nursing home or forgotten in their own homes, we should commit to love.
• For every citizen of this nation who sits homeless on the sidewalk, we should commit to love.
• For every immigrant longing for a better life, we should commit to love. By offering a constructive and feasible, dare I say workable, process of opportunity to legally become a citizen of this country – contributing and sharing in the opportunities of this nation many of us love so deeply. I will never understand why we put up so many roadblocks to those who would choose to commit themselves to our nation’s principles and support those same principles with their very lives.
• For every veteran of this nation who struggles to find stability in their mental health, we should commit to love them enough to provide the resources to give them an opportunity for a life worth living after defending our lives.
• For every teacher in every classroom, we should commit to love them enough to support them with a livable wage, that financial support to inspire the minds of our children to change the world.
• For every single parent trying to work full-time and raise a family and still struggling to make their income do more than is possible, we should commit to love.
• For every child born, we should commit to love them enough to provide them every opportunity within our power to teach them their value and the joy we feel for their presence in the world.

Now that is a new normal I would like to grow into 2021. How about you? What new normal would you like to grow into in 2021? There is no time like the present my friends.

It is a new year – full of hopes and dreams and possibilities. God promises all of that to all of us.

Be well in this new year. Be light in this new year.  Be love in this new year. Be joy in this new year.

Until I see you in church.

Pastor Chris
(Reprinted from the Jan. 2021 newsletter.)