Introduction
There are few things I enjoy as much as a fresh, new journal. I’m kind of a snob about them, really. I think many of us get the same kind of feeling when the calendar flips to January 1. All those fresh, clean months ahead, all the potential, all the opportunity. Of course this is just magical thinking. None of us starts anything with a blank slate (including an empty journal or a free and clean calendar). We’re even born with the history of our genetics and environment. We come into this world with a name someone else gives us, loaded full with their histories and hopes, debits and credits, definitions and aspirations. The “journal” we get comes with our name written on the cover and a whole library of content filling the first part of it. This isn’t to say we don’t have a choice as to what gets added or that we can’t choose another name to signify a significant change in the plot, though. This Sunday will mark our first worship gathering of the new year and with it the chance to do something significant as we imagine our future together. We may not be given a blank journal, but we can write some new pages.
Grace and peace y’all,
John Ray and the teaching team
Scriptures
