New Beginnings

A new year brings a new beginning. There is an excitement that comes with newness: infinite possibilities and opportunities, a fresh start. But newness can also bring trepidation. Even the most unpleasant situations have the advantage of being known, even safe. Newness can bring on a severe case of the ‘what ifs.’ How tempting it is to retreat to the safe harbor of what has been.

But the Christian faith is never content with safe harbors. Newness is baked into our tradition (ironic, isn’t it?). Christmas is the celebration of a newborn child. Epiphany is the dawning of revelation. And this Sunday we celebrate the baptism of Jesus.

Baptism is newness crystallized. It is a new life, a new journey, a new identity, a new commitment. Baptism is a new story. It is a story that comes with new characters, a new plot, new conflicts and a new narrative arc.

I wonder how we will embrace the newness all around us. I wonder what it means for us as individuals but also as a church.

When Jesus was baptized, the Gospels tell us that as he came up from the water, a voice from heaven declared, “You are my beloved.” What a beautiful way to step into a new story!

May we listen for that same message as we step boldly into a new story. “You are my beloved!”

Scott Hovey