Dear Friends,
 
I shared the following with you during the first winter I was with you, in December 2003.  Since it still expresses my deep sense of the wonder of Advent and the Incarnation (Christmas) and even "New Years" - and encapsulates a vision of discipleships, a matter still (and always) concerning us who would follow Jesus - I thought it worh sharing with you once again.
 
I'm  not much in the way of a poet, but I confess to having been inspired every once in a while (I think!).  One of my favorites (and the only one that has ever been published!) is about Advent.  It came upon me as a meditation on Luke's story of the Annunciation of Mary (Luke 1:26-38).  To me it seems that Mary, the mother of Jesus, is an archetype of the Christian disciple - a person like any of us whom God calls and asks to participate in the spiritual drama of Incarnation.  So, I offer it to you this season hoping that you may find some meaning in it for yourselves.
 

Something New
 
In the beginning always there is God unseen, but felt and heard
tugging and pulling - or plucking some insistent chord
that just won't fade
despite other noise
And ringing with the infinite wish and will:  "Something New."
Terrifying, yes
But there's a thrill of a certain kind that grabs you and makes you listen.
You can't be bored anymore either - because
boredom's the fruit of sadness
and Something New wants to love you.
Even still, only God knows what God is up to.
And it's crazy to risk everything, isn't it,
your good name, even your body - your breath, your life
to believe this tune playing over and over in your mind
like some silly song you dreamed and can't stop singing
to your self all morning long?
 
In the beginning always there is God unseen, but felt and heard;
Yet then a human struggle to feel and listen
and finally to understand the incredible grace
that Advent wants, needs you to be part of it,
its peace and its holy adventure.
Your borrow the words and pray:
 
Lord, let it be done to me according to Thy will."
And in the end there is "Amen" and Something New.
 

May you and yours have a Holy Advent, a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.
 
Grace and Peace,
 
Brett