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God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. – Genesis 1:5

Happy Epiphany Bethany Lutheran Church!

As I scroll through Facebook lately, I have noticed several friends trying to find their one word for the new year. I even saw an explanation about it. It said, “Scrap that long list of goals you won’t remember a few weeks from now anyway. Choose just one word. One word you can focus on every day, all year long. One word that sums up who you want to be or how you want to live. It will take intentionality and commitment, but if you let it, your one word will shape not only your year, but also you. It will become that compass that directs your decisions and guides your steps.”

I think it’s a great idea. It’s a simple way to center ourselves in the midst of chaos and give us something to move toward. We have made a list of star words for our church to focus on during the next six weeks in worship. Words that reflect and remind us of Christ among us in the midst our order and disruptions. We hear both in the readings this week. As the year gets going, we feel these opposite pulls. Some of us need more order. Covid has made our lives feel formless, without routines. Others of us need to make more room for God’s disruptive grace. Even as we hear John the Baptizer bring his holy chaos, we also hear God beginning the creation with order. 

God’s creation balances light and dark, with no judgment on either. Neither is better or worse than the other. Each needs the other, as they exist as parts of our creation. We think of light as better than darkness, especially in these winter days when we crave light. We forget that dark is the place of rest, of birth, of the sprouting of the seed, and we often want to rush through the darkness to the light. 

As we walk together in these dark days of winter, may we seek to see God’s work in the darkness as we gaze our eyes starward to deepen our faith and center ourselves in Christ. To discover that place, that one word, we are being called to explore and embrace in this new year. 

May this year be a year of new connections, renewal, and hope! Amen.