Pastor's Note

Beloved of God,

Do you have a song in your head? I do. I almost always do. When I worked as the Program Director of a 96 bed, locked psychiatric facility, one of my staff counselors asked me, "Do you have a song for everything?" I replied, "So far." Sue and I are always asking each other, "Do you have a song in your head?" and the other one will sing a few verses or hum a few verses. Maybe that's what makes a good marriage, both having songs in their heads. So, do you have a song in your head? I do.  Right now, it is the song sung by Peter Allen –
"Everything Old Is New Again."

"When trumpets were mellow
And every gal only had one fellow
No need to remember when
Everything old is new again
Don't throw the past away
You might need it some rainy day
Dreams can come true again
When everything old is new again."

With the ending of a tumultuous year, with all of the things that have happened both here and around the world, many are looking forward to being rid of this year, hoping that next year will be better. Maybe it will be. That would be nice. But there are no guarantees. Except maybe the most important. Jesus said, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age (the Greek word for age is 'eon')." No matter where we are, what we are doing, who we are doing it with, when we are doing it, God is present in our lives. For me that is an important constant. I'm not always aware of God's presence, but it is there. And that brings me some comfort. Even when I feel alone, I'm not. There is something really nice about that.

How does God make himself present to you? To me, he gives me opportunities to serve. As I mentioned the other Sunday, I have a few life mottos. One is "My job is to make your job easier" and the other is "We are here to serve." I see God using you and the members of the Mariposa UMC in many acts and many opportunities of service. On behalf of those who benefit from your many acts of service, kindness, charity, and goodwill, I thank you.  It doesn't go unnoticed. It is appreciated.

So, as the New Year begins, keep your eyes and ears open for those opportunities that will come your way to serve both God and others. Look forward to those opportunities, inopportune as they may sometimes be. And when you do them, listen to see if you don't hear, maybe faintly in the
air, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

Grace and peace,
Bert