From Rev. Susan
"Living with Intention"
One of my husband and my New Year’s traditions is to spend time reflecting on the year that has been and the year to come. We do a kind of inventory, sharing some of our highlights from the previous year and remembering the challenges and difficulties we experienced. We remember really significant things - like life changing events or times of worry and hardship, and we also remember more mundane things like the best or worst movie we saw or meal we ate. Once we feel like we have had a good inventory of the last year, we begin to imagine the New Year ahead. We share our hopes for the New Year, the intentions we hope to bring forward, and we consider any major changes that might be ahead.
The New Year is a time that invites contemplation - it is a natural time for reflection. January is named for the God Janus, the god of beginnings and transitions who is often featured with two faces, one looking forward and one looking back. This time of contemplation and reflection is an invitation to be more intentional and thoughtful in how we hope to move forward into the New Year. This is where the tradition of setting New Year’s Resolutions comes from. In my younger days, I would often set New Year’s resolutions and would probably break them by February (if not January!). Now, I have come to understand the value in setting intentions that I hope to bring forward into the New Year. Rather than being rooted in things I judge about myself, they are rooted in practices and values that I actually hold - and the intention is a reminder to hold these more present in the year.
This month of January, we will explore living with intention and for the first Sunday of the New Year, our service will invite us to set an intention for the year.
