Happy New Year

Behold I am making all things new
Rev 21:5

New...

New... Are you ready for NEW? I have to admit, I am a creature of habit. I like my
patterns, my places, my people. I don’t seek change as a matter of course, but only out of
necessity. And even then, like many of you, the new often reverts back to the old and I find
myself right where I started. Perhaps I have just gotten used to my broken, old self, and I am not sure what the new me might look like.

But New is the promise... Behold, I am making all things new...

New... I can think of a few people who could use a little newness in their lives. They
would be a whole lot easier to live with if they were new. But then again, perhaps I would be a whole lot easier to live with if I allowed God to work some new in me.

New... I think most of us would love to see new happen in our world today. But that
seems like an impossible dream. Wars threatening every continent except Antarctica...
poverty stripping our children of their potential, and leaving our seniors at risk... violence in our city streets... division in our nation’s leadership... a national debt that will cripple our grandchildren... weather patterns that grow increasingly intense... hate speech that finds
listening ears... My mother used to have a saying: “going to hell in a hand basket.” As a child I didn’t understand what that meant. But now, as I look around me, I wonder if her saying fits. It doesn’t matter your political persuasion, I think we all agree that the world seems to be going to hell in a handbasket. Is new possible in the midst of all this brokenness?

But New is the promise... Behold, I am making all things new...

New... During the time of the Babylonian exile, the people of God yearned for home.
They cried out, “How can we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?” (Ps. 137) Into their broken dreams, God speaks a word of hope through the prophet Isaiah.

See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
Isaiah 43:19

Bit by bit, God made a way through the wilderness to bring the people home, to rebuild the Temple and the city walls, to give them a hope and a future. But, sometimes in the midst of the brokenness it is hard to notice those little bits that add up to a beautiful new thing. That’s why God asks: “I am doing a new thing... do you not perceive it?” The prophet Zechariah called out those who struggled to see God’s hand in the little bits- those who despised the day of small things. (Zechariah 4:10) They only rejoiced when they saw the capstone placed on the completed Temple. How many little miracles they missed along the way! I wonder if we are missing the bits... the small things... while we yearn for the completed miracle.

New... The new star word for Lenape Valley-2026 is Fulfillment. When it comes to the
promises of God, we can trust in their fulfillment. So, when God says, “I am making all things new” we ought to be looking for evidence of miracles all around us. The birth of a child... a sweet 6-year-old reciting Luke’s Christmas story complete with hand motions... a teen choir declaring: Joy to the World- Unspeakable Joy... the wisdom of our super agers... a church united against all odds... the abundant generosity of our faith community to bless 100+ families... one miracle after another. With you, I still yearn for the big changes, but today, I commit to celebrating the small things God is doing every day!

New... perhaps there are some small things God needs to do in me this year to work His new in me. Is it possible that He has a few small things in mind for you? May this year be a year when we celebrate Fulfillment... one little bit at a time.

With you sharing in God’s NEW,
Anita


If you want your own Star Word... pick one up at church... or spin for your word with this
link: