A Plan for the New Year

The past two weeks the Parish Resource Center has been closed for the Christmas holiday. However I have been coming into the Center to use the 'quiet' space to catch up on some work, check the mail, but mostly to do some reading and planning for the coming year.

One of the things I did was to go over several legal size note pads on which I have been taking notes and doing work over the past few months. I tore off the pages no longer needed and made some new notes to follow up on things I said were good ideas to do. I also put on my calendar some of the ideas/items so I will do them and not just keep them as ideas on paper!!

I came across some notes from a video by Mike Slaughter of Ginghamsburg UMC that I watched on line last fall. Mike uses the acronym DRIVE as a plan for what he wants to do each day. It is easy to remember and yet provides for a holistic approach to daily living. It can serve as a plan for resolving to live better in the New Year.

D- Daily Devotions- Begin the day with God in prayer and scripture - or a devotional discipline you enjoy. Recently I have enjoyed using the Book of Common Prayer.

R -Read for Life Learning - In this ever changing world we need to keep up in our field as well as read some of the classics. My personal challenge is to read outside on my work field!

I - Invest in key relationships - Do you spend quality time with family and people who nourish you? Often we spend too much time dealing with persons who drain us.

V- Visioning- Do you spend your time just catching up and checking off the 'to do list'. Do you give yourself time to dream and work on the vision you have for yourself and your church/work/organization? A vision un-acted upon is only a dream or words in a strategic plan.

E-Eating and Exercising - Ouch!!! Once again I need to review what and how much I eat and to set aside time for exercising -other than pushing back my chair from the desk or exercising my hands on the keyboard or remote control.

D.R.I.V.E into the NEW YEAR and the road should be an enjoyable and effective one.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Following the Star

I have been using an online Advent meditation, "Following the Star" http://www.followingthestar.org/.
The meditation music along with the reminder to "Be Still"

in this busy season has been very helpful and inspiring.

When I was serving in the local church I usually read a story to the pre-schoolers about "Quintilius" the star. It is a cute story of small, insignificant star in the universe that is chosen to shine on that first Christmas night. Little Quintilius had to work extra hard to shine that night, so hard in fact that he burst into a million pieces. The story suggests that Quintilus still shines in each of us as we share the news of Jesus birth today. (It is one way to explain why Quintilius no longer shines. )

What was the Christmas star? Planets aligning? It is a matter of debate. Another Advent resource I have used is the Hubble Advent calendar and offers views into the mysteries of space. www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/12/hubble_space_telescope_advent_1.html
It provides spectacular pictures of our galaxy and galaxies beyond. It shows the beauty and vastness of space. The power and majesty in those pictures suggests the first Christmas Star could have been a unique galactic event. The pictures also serve as a reminder that planet earth is not even a pin head in the millions of galaxies. Yet God chose to come to earth and dwell among us in Jesus Christ -Emmanuel. Whether that first star was little "Quintilius" , planets aligning , or a unique cosmic event, it served as a sign that God was doing something special on planet earth.

Like many of you we have a star on our tree. As you look at the star on your tree( or perhaps an angel), let it serve as a reminder that God not only did something special that first Christmas night, but God can and wants to do something special in our lives even today. That God still desires 'peace on earth to all of good will' . That God can use the least of us as well as the vast universe to share good news to the poor and release to the captive. That the promise of "Emmanuel" is still ours today.

Have a Merry Christmas and Hope Filled New Year

Hubble Advent December 23