January 1, 2012. – Happy New Year   “The name of Jesus”

Philippians 2: 5-11

The light is still with us; the light is always with us. That light being Jesus has been born to us, has been born for us. So what will we take into this brand new year? What will we take into 2012? What will be the foundation upon which we all rely or upon which we all fall back?

As we begin a new year, perhaps we can anticipate the joys and sorrows that life will bring.

Perhaps this New Year, shrouded in the mysteries of what will happen or just what might happen, is a source of anxiety for us. The fact is that we don’t know what will be. We cannot predict happiness, sadness, future anxieties, separation, life or even death for that matter. (No matter what the documentaries say about the Mayan calendar)

All that we can predict is what Paul affirms for us today, that is, “God sent his son, born of a woman in order to redeem those who are under the law” or those who feel the heavy burdens of this present life, the chaos of sin and the human condition. This is something of which we can always be sure; because, if we hear it being read or proclaimed to us, then it is happening to us.

The light, Jesus born to us and for us, is always with us. So we move into 2012 with our hopes and dreams. We begin the year with our pork and sauerkraut or our black eyed peas, depending on our New Year’s traditions, and we hope for success, happiness, love and a repair of whatever had been broken over the past year.

But again, the things that are to come are shrouded in mystery, because, when it comes to such things, we just don’t know and cannot predict future events. And like Ebenezer Scrooge when he confronts the ghost of Christmas yet to come, we probably fear what is to come, that of which we don’t know, that over which we have no control, more than we do of any past or present memories.

We hope and dream for economic stability. We hope and dream of political soundness and peace in our world. We hope and dream for job security and health care for our families. We hope and dream of furthering ourselves as we move forward in our lives. Yet, with all that is out there in our world today, even the most honest, educated, experienced, and un-politically influenced individual or endeavor cannot promise or predict that these things will come to fruition.

Painting a rather bleak worldly picture of 2012 was not something I had intended. I’m only reporting to you what I see and then what I know. In response to the unknown is the Good News! I really can only tell you that regardless of what this year brings, regardless of the events in your world, your situation or in your lives, the light is still with us and the light is always with us. In the Philippians’ passage, Paul relates to the unpredictable nature of our lives and our world by proclaiming that God sent his son, born of a woman, born to us and born for us, that we may have hope through Jesus.

He proclaims that God is always with us, that God walks with us and that God will see each of us as we move forward into and through this New Year, even as we experience all of life’s unpredictable mysteries. I hope you walk with this promise in your heart and it is my prayer that the Good News of God through Jesus, who is the Christ, will continually touch your lives in 2012! Amen!

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