At the stroke of midnight!

 

I hope and pray your New Year 

   will be filled with peace for you and those you love...

 

I hope and pray our New Year 

   will unite us all in the love of God, revealed in Christ Jesus...

 

And I hope and pray that 2021 

   will find us growing together in holiness, health and happiness!

 

Happy New Year! 

Auld Lang Syne by Kenny G

   


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Pause for Prayer: FRIDAY 1/1/21

It's a new beginning, Lord, 
a new day, a new month, a new year:

and I know that new beginnings come in different ways
for different folks, so...

I pray today for all who've waited,
longed and hungered for a new year,

eager to see 2020 fade away
in the rear view mirror

- which I'm fairly certain is every one of us...

I pray for those who are more than ready
to move beyond the hurt and disappointment,

the illness, fear and suffering,
the grief and burdens of the year just past...

I pray for those who desire a new beginning,

who pray for a new grace

to look afresh at everyone and everything…

I pray for the grace we all need, Lord,

to begin again, to trust again, to try again

to hope again in you 
and in your gracious love for us…

I pray this morning for those who are stuck, Lord,

who’ve lost the energy, the courage, the desire
to look ahead to a new beginning...

I pray for those who’ve lost a sense

of where one day ends and another begins...

I pray for those so tired of yesterday

they’ve lost a taste for tomorrow…

I pray for the grace we all need, Lord,

to begin again, to trust again, to try again

to hope again in you 
and in your gracious love for us…

And I pray, Lord, for those too tired
to mark the beauty of a rising sun,
the solace of a silvery moon…

I pray for those weighed down by worries, 
fears and problems,
burdened by too much work

with too little time to do it…

I pray for those whose days and nights run together,
keeping them from rest and relaxation...

I pray for the grace we all need, Lord,

to begin again, to trust again, to try again

to hope again in you 
and in your gracious love for us…

And I pray, Lord, for all who long for the gentle way
you hold us when we’re weary,

strengthen us when we’re weak
and carry us from day to day...

I pray for those who need to see
how faithfully you walk with us: 
day by day, week by week,
through every season, all year long...

I pray for those who wait
for your healing of last year's loss and grief,
for the gift of your gentle presence,
for your peace in the year we've just begun... 

I pray for the grace we all need, Lord,

to begin again, to trust again, to try again

to hope again in you 
and in your gracious love for us…

Send your Spirit upon us, Lord,
to open our minds and hearts

to all you'll offer in this new year, 2021...

May this truly be a year of grace:

may your mercy be our healing 
and your healing be our hope…

Give us the grace we all need, Lord,

to begin again, to trust again, to try again

to hope again in you 
and in your gracious love for us….

Amen.


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NIGHT PRAYER: New Year's Eve

 

It's New Year's Eve, Lord, 

in a year that seems much longer

than any year could be...

But last year's candle's burning low

and soon, at midnight, 'twil be time

to light a new one and to pray 

you'll light a flame of hope

within our hearts, deep in our souls,

where your Spirit's light burns ever bright

and darkness is unknown...

 

I'll be glad to see the old year go

yet grateful, Lord, for all the ways

you helped me move from day to day,

through thick and thin,

through sorrow and joy

to this new year's eve

and the promise of tomorrow...

 

And I remember, too, the times

when somehow I forgot, ignored or missed

that you were right there by my side 

and, foolishly, 

I tried to make it on my own...

And yet you never failed me, Lord,
you never failed to love me,
to pardon and forgive me:
your grace so sweet and pure 
and always freely given...

Today I come with empty hands: 
I haven't much to offer 
and anything I do have 
was first your gift to me...

But there comes a new year now, Lord,
and with it comes my prayer 
that I grow worthy of your love,
more faithful to your word...

In this new year, Lord,
day by day,
make me stronger in my faith,
more trusting of your help...

Nurture in my soul
a hunger for the truth,
a thirst for all that's holy,
a desire for your wisdom...

Help me settle for nothing less
than what you offer, Lord:
to heal my soul, mend my heart,
and guide my steps along your path...

It's New Year's Eve Lord,
in a year that seemed so very new
- not all that long ago...

Wake my heart to a new year, Lord,

to a new day, to tomorrow, to 2021:

to all your grace and gifts

and the promise of your presence,

your healing and your peace...

Amen.

I wasn't able to find a good sung version of this hymn

but it's perfect for this New Year's eve, so here's an 

instrumental version with the lyrics in graphic form -

it's an easy tune - you can sing along! 

 

Day of New Beginnings by Brian Wren

 

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YOUR Top Ten Stories from 2020

For a decade now, I've posted an annual guide to help each of us determine The Top Ten Stories in our lives for the past year.  This year one story, the pandemic, has had a profound impact on all the stories of all our lives - so I've tailored this template along those lines. You might use these questions as a guide for your prayer and reflection or to help you sit down and write your own Top Ten Stories of 2020.

1) This year has been the source of many sad and tragic stories so let's start with the harder question: What was the happiest story of my life in the past year? In the midst of all the bad news, what brought me some relief, some happiness - even some joy?  How did that story begin?  How did it end? Who were the characters in that story as it unfolded?  How might I keep the memory of that story alive in my heart, to sustain me through whatever difficult times the new year might bring?  Have I taken time to thank God for this happiness?  What particular happy story might I anticipate, hope for, pray for in 2021?

2) What was the most deeply spiritual story in my life in 2020? When was I most aware of God, of my Higher Power, of the Spirit alive in my soul?  How did God move in my life in the past year - and how did I respond to God's presence within and around me? What was (were) my deepest moment(s) of prayer? Did the pandemic deepen my prayer life - or make it more difficult? How would I "chart" my spiritual journey in 2020: its ups and downs, its twists and turns, its straightaways and its detours, its clear paths and its dead ends?  How did restrictions on community worship impact my spiritual life: negatively and/or positively? Did I find ways to be at prayer with others during the pandemic? What are my hopes and resolutions for the new year ahead? Where do I hope my spiritual journey will take me in 2021?

3) What was the most selfless story of my past year? In what ways did the pandemic offer me opportunities to serve others, care for others, sacrifice for others? Who were the people in my life who gave up things for me?  What did I let go of for others? What did I receive in what others offered me? Was I open to how others wanted to be generous to me? Have I expressed my gratitude?   What are some practical ways in which I might become a more generous person as the story 2021 unfolds? 

4) Is there a story of my making peace in the past year? Did I let go any old grudges? Brush some chips from my shoulder? Broom some resentments from the corners of my heart?  Did I forgive anyone?  Accept anyone's forgiveness of me? Were there some differences and divisions I helped to resolve?  Am I carrying any hard feelings into the new year?  As I review the year behind me, do I find myself to be at peace with God?  with my neighbor? with myself? What left-over peace making responsibilities am I carrying into 2021?  What's my plan for working on them? Who are the people, in what situations, might I be a peacemaker in the year ahead?

5) This one's a hard question - but important to ask: What's the most selfish story I recall from the past year? Did I prosper at the expense of someone else? Were there times when I put my own needs ahead of those around me at home or at work or at school? How did my selfishness hurt others?  What can I learn about myself in all of this?  Have I made amends for any selfishness? In what situations, in whose lives, might I be a more selfless person as the story of my new year begins and plays out?

6) What was the saddest story I have to tell from 2020?  And it might be difficult to name just one here... What happened that left me feeling wounded, empty, lost? Who helped me through that time? Who shared my burden with me?  Was I able to bring my sorrow to the Lord? to prayer? What did I lose in this story - and what did I find in living through that loss? Have I healed from this sadness or am I still clinging to it? How can I reverence the memory of this sadness without letting it consume my attention and energy? Have I asked the Lord to heal and mend this sadness in my life?  Can I name and reach out to someone whose story of sadness I know, someone whose spirits I might help lift in 2021?  

7) Among all the many disturbing images of pain and suffering in the past year, what story of beauty survives in my mind, my imagination my heart? Something in nature? A concert? Watching a child grow? A wedding? Someone's story of perseverance and survival? The beauty of so many giving so much for others?  A friendship? A work of art? A book or a poem? A vacation? A personal accomplishment? A touch, an embrace, a newfound love? Have I shared the beauty of this experience with anyone else?  Have I expressed my gratitude for such beauty?  Have I thanked God for this beauty, God from whom all beauty and blessings flow? Have I made time for moments of beauty in my life? Can I name a time, a place or an opportunity when I might look for and share something beautiful with others in the New Year...

8) What’s the story of new acquaintances and friends who became part of my life in 2020? It's likely the pandemic cut me off from some family and friends - but how did it help me meet and get to know new people in my life?  Or how did the pandemic serve to deepen my relationship with people who have been in my life for a long time? How is my life richer for having these new folks, these improved relationships, in my life? How did I enrich the lives of others? Who are the people around me whom I might reach out to in 2021?  The Lord is the best and most faithful friend I have: how will I need, find and nurture the Lord's friendship in my story in 2021?

9) What was the story of the greatest challenge or change in my life in the past year? How did this change or challenge impact my life? my spirituality? my faith? my relationships with others and my understanding of their difficulties? If this challenge, this change was difficult, how did I seek and accept help in living with it? If this challenge, this change was a happy one, how did I share it with others and invite them to benefit from it?  What challenges lie ahead of me in 2021 and how will I ask God to help me accept them, work with them and meet them? How has 2020 prepared me for my story of challenges and changes in 2021?

10) What’s the most unfinished story left over from my life in 2020? What are the loose ends I need to tie up? What fear, hesitation or just plain laziness has kept me from completing something I wanted, needed and planned to do? Are others waiting for me to bring this in? Am I waiting for others to help me? Am I ready or slow to accept others' help?  What still needs to be done - and how and when will I get to that in the year ahead? What peace, what happiness might be mine were I to bring some closure to this unfinished story?  Where is God in my unfinished story?  How might I open myself and invite the Lord to have a greater role in bringing to fulfillment all the stories he begins in me?  How will God be the resolution of my stories in the year ahead?

I doubt that your Top Ten list or mine will be published anywhere but pondering these questions and looking at the past year with an eye to the year ahead will at least be instructive and, it's to be hoped, very helpful.

We all have a new year ahead of us and with it will come new stories to add to our personal histories.  I pray that yours will be filled with faith, hope and love for you and all whose paths will cross yours in 2021.     Happy New Year!

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Pause for Prayer: THURSDAY 12/31

A new year begins in just a few hours, Lord,

and I’m thinking about beginning 2021 

as best I can - and with your help…

If there’s one thing I’m sure of - it’s this:

    I can’t count on myself

    to make the changes I need to make.

Only with your help, Lord,

will I change and grow

- only with your help…

You're the Lord of

freely given pardons,

second chances,

clean slates,

fresh starts

and new beginnings

- and I need all of the above

as I begin a new year…

Most of all, Lord:

refresh my hope and restore my trust

that with your help,

I can indeed make a new beginning, 

a fresh start

and that you’ll give me

the opportunity and the help I need

to live as I truly want to live,

to do what I truly want to do,

to love as I truly want to love,

to pray as I truly need to pray…

Don’t let disappointment over past failed efforts

keep me from trusting that with your help

I can accomplish, 

I can realize my heart’s desires

and live in peace,

according to your word…

So, help me make modest resolutions;

let this new beginning be reasonable,

my intentions pure and generous;

my efforts fueled by grace

and my success guaranteed by your grace…

Help me know, Lord, in my heart of hearts,

what you would have me gladly resolve

and follow through on 

in the year that looms ahead...

Sharpen my attention and my focus

on the work I truly need to do

in the twelve months just ahead...

Be Lord of my new year

and help me live it a day at a time,

each day blessedwith your mercy,

your freely given pardon

and all the second chances,

clean slates and fresh starts I need

and that fall so freely

from your heart and hand...

Hear my prayer today, Lord, 

at the end of 2020:

make of the months ahead

a year of grace, a gift from you…

 

You are Alpha and Omega, Lord,

my beginning and my end:

bless and keep me as a new year dawns 

and help me strive, again,

to walk in your light,

in your love and in  your peace...

Amen.

 

 
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NIGHT PRAYER: Wednesday 12/30

 

In this octave of Christmas, Night Prayer will be simple, looking to extend the peace and joy of Christmas over this special week on the church calendar.  So, relax, sit back with the Lord and savor the peace of Christmas...

 

It's the eve of New Year's eve 

and that seems a good night to ponder 

the wisdom, the knowledge,

the very mind of God...

 

With hindsight, I survey the year just past and see

how foolish has the world been:

how unwise its princes, priests and people,

how often witless my own ways, Lord,

how ill-advised, hasty and imprudent 

so many of my thoughts, my words, my deeds...

 

All this, and yet you open every day for our inspection

the depth, the breadth, the riches

of your wisdom and your knowledge:

you share with us your mind, divine

in word, in truth, in grace...

 

In the new year ahead,

open us up, Lord, to receive, to absorb, 

to love and to live by your wisdom:

forsaking our foolish ways

and walking by your light alone

through the darkness of our folly...

 

To you who share with us

so much more than we have merited,

more than we deserve,

to you be praise and glory, Lord,

now and ever more...

Protect us in your wisdom, Lord,

watch over us while we sleep

that awake, we might keep watch with you

and asleep, rest in your peace...

Amen.

 

Who Has Known by John Foley

 

 1. Oh the depths of the riches of God.

And the breadth of the wisdom and knowledge of God. 

 

For who has known the mind of God? 

To Him be Glory forever 

 

2. A virgin will carry a child and give birth. 

And his name shall be called Emmanuel. 

 

3. The people in darkness have seen a great light: 

For a child has been born, his dominion is wide.

 

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What's the "growing edge" in YOUR family?

 

 

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Pause for Prayer: WEDNESDAY 12/30

 

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NIGHT PRAYER: Tuesday 12/29

 

In this octave of Christmas, Night Prayer will be simple, looking to extend the peace and joy of Christmas over this special week on the church calendar.  So, relax, sit back with the Lord and savor the peace of Christmas...

 

You came as a child, Lord,

for us to cradle in our arms the One

whose spacious, loving heart can hold

the world and all its people...

You came as an infant, Lord,

made for our embrace,

inviting us to hold you close,

as close as you hold us...

You came as a baby, Lord,

crying 'til our lullaby,

our tender, gentle evening song

might whisper you to sleep... 

 

Protect us, Lord, while we're awake,

keep vigil while we sleep

that, awake we might keep watch with you

and asleep, rest in your peace...

 

Amen. 

 

 

Christmas Lullaby by John Rutter

 

 

Clear in the darkness a light shines in Bethlehem:

Angels are singing, their sound fills the air. 

Wise men have journeyed to greet their Messiah; 

But only a mother and baby lie there. 

 

‘Ave Maria, ave Maria’: 

Hear the soft lullaby the angel hosts sing. 

‘Ave Maria, ave Maria, 

Maiden, and mother of Jesus our King’. 

 

Where are his courtiers, and who are his people? 

Why does he bear neither sceptre nor crown? 

Shepherds his courtiers, the poor for his people, 

With peace as his sceptre and love for his crown. 

 

What though your treasures are not gold or incense? 

Lay them before him with hearts full of love. 

Praise to the Christ child, and praise to his mother 

Who bore us a Saviour by grace from above.

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