As followers of Jesus Christ, January 1st does not technically mark the new year. Sunday, December 1st, 2024 marks the beginning of a New Year. This was of course not the beginning of the January through December calendar, but it was the beginning of the Christian calendar. This calendar begins with the expectation of the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that was really the way we marked the beginning of new things? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if new seasons, new projects, new relationships, new visions, new missions, new treatment plans, new weight loss journeys, new, better, mental health practices, new financial fitness goals, new (you fill in the blank) things started with the overwhelming expectation that Jesus was going to show up!?
What new goals are you setting for yourself, or what goals are you re-establishing this year? Do you expect Jesus to show up in them? If you are not a new year’s resolution type of person, in what ways do you expect Jesus to show up in your life?
The Leadership Board set three goals surrounding our core values this year.
Inclusion: to visually reflect the kingdom of heaven.
Community: to expand the Children & Youth Programs.
Faith in Action: to foster a relationship with the Hispanic community through the home goods closet program.
As you look toward being a part of the Sewickley United Methodist Church in 2025, I want you to set those three goals in your heart. And to simplify them, set the core values in your heart; inclusion, community, and faith in action. Repeat those three words, pray over them, pray into them, just pray. Let us pray together and expect with everything that we have within us that Jesus is going to show up. We can say that with confidence, because these goals were set through prayer and discernment. They were set trusting we are living into God’s will for this community, and God’s will is bigger than us. Jesus is here with us, and we are so looking forward to the ways Jesus is going to show up and do mighty things in this New Year here at Sewickley United Methodist Church. I am so grateful to be a part of this journey with you! Can we begin this season with the expectation Jesus will be present within it?
From one light to another,
Pastor Hannah Loughman
Photo by Karon Elliott Edleson