Call to Worship
May you be blessed in the new year.
May your worries subside.
May your fears decrease.
May your hope grow
And your joy increase.
May the Spirit give you peace.

Unison Prayer
As the new year begins,
May we have the courage
to face whatever may come.
May our hearts be filled with grace,
and may our spirits overflow with love. Amen.

Words of Assurance: Isaiah 43:18-19, 2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV
The LORD says,
“Forget the former things; do not dwell in the past.
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come;
the old has gone, the new is here!

The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father,
who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil;
for thine is the kingdom,
and the power,
and the glory forever.
Amen.

Opening Song: JJ Heller, “This Year (Happy New Year)”

Scripture Reading: Philippians 3:12-14, NIV
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Sunday Sermon

How would you summarize your 2025? There are many approaches we could take. We could mention how we felt ~ for example, if we felt anxious for most of the year, or worried, or stressed, or rushed; or happy, or reflective, or carefree.

What was your dominant mood in 2025?
What would you like it to be in 2026?
How are you going to get there?

We could talk about the year in terms of wins and losses: births and deaths, breakups and new relationships, injuries and illnesses and accidents and hopefully, recoveries.

Did you lose anyone important to you this past year?
Did anyone new enter your life?
Did any of your friends or relatives get married?
How was your health?
Can you be healthier, and if so, how?
Are you going to do it?

We could summarize the year in terms of experiences we had: places we went, special events, people with whom we spent time. Or perhaps we might list normal, ongoing pleasures.

Did you travel in 2025?
Did anyone come to you?
What special events did you experience? (For example, beach trips, holidays, Santaport)
Did you have a favorite book, movie, TV show, album or song?
What normal things that you enjoy did you keep doing?

Last week I caught up with a friend on the West Coast. She asked me how my year had been, and I took out the journal I keep. But instead of telling her about major events, I decided to list the things I’d learned about myself since we’d last spoken. Here are some of them:

I enjoy looking forward to things. I really like taking out the trash, much more than normal people. I like spotting the smiling moon in the sky, watching snow cover everything, and hearing the sound of wind. I learned a new word that I love – apricity, meaning the warmth of the sun on one’s face, even in winter. I like going to bed without having to get up, having new clothes that I haven’t worn yet, and singing on boats. I finally don’t mind being called “sir,” and on Christmas, thanks to my sister, I learned that I like pineapple pie.

Did you learn anything new about yourself last year?

Now let’s turn to the spiritual realm, where the real action takes place. Paul writes, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on.” There’s a lot about the past we’d like to forget, but unfortunately, we tend to carry it around like excess baggage. Christ wants to take our guilt away, but we keep picking it back up again, beating ourselves up for things that may have happened years or even decades ago, for which Christ has already forgiven us. The new year is a good time to examine ourselves in terms of who we’ve been and who we’d like to be.

Here are some terrible New Year’s resolutions that I know I can keep:
1) Eat more and exercise less.
2) Keep beating myself up.
3) Complain about little things.
4) Replay unhappy memories.
5) Put off things that are good for me.
6) Treat myself because I deserve it.
7) Maybe drink more?
8) Put in the bare minimum.
9) Blame others for my problems.
10) Keep doing the same things and pretend that things will change.

Make your own terrible list here!

If I could just keep all ten of these resolutions – and I’m pretty sure I could – then at this time next year I could claim success, and that would be pretty sweet, because it would mean that I had set my goals and achieved them. And in fact if we want to be anxious and worried and grumpy at the same time next year, I’m pretty sure we could all do it.

Jesus is rolling his eyes right now. Paul is right next to him.

Paul wants to be a better person. Paul wants to change. Paul wants to put the past behind him and press on to a more glorious future. Paul is planning to press on despite being in prison, suffering from a painful disease, having friends die on a regular basis and knowing that in the past he has been a horrible person and he can never make up for it. Still, he makes this choice:

I will press on to the goal to win the prize.

But how will Paul press on? To the church at Corinth, he writes that he has made peace with his disease, because he feels the protection of God over him. To paraphrase, he has accepted the things he cannot change. In the Good News translation of today’s Scripture, he writes that he will “try his best to reach what is ahead;” in other words, he will change the things he can. In the Good News Bible, he writes that he will “run straight toward the goal.”

One chapter later, Paul writes, “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” Another translation says, dwell on these things, which pairs well with the Words of Assurance from Isaiah, as God says, “Do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing. Do you not perceive it?”

What new thing might God be doing in your life?
What new thing would you like God to do in your life?
What will you do to produce the conditions for this to occur?

Ecclesiastes was very wise, but Ecclesiastes also made quite a few mistakes. One of them was concluding that there was “nothing new under the sun.” Another was believing that he had tried everything, when there were actually a lot of things he had not yet tried. A.I. is not the only thing that’s new; did you know that God is still making new species? God is not done creating, which means God can always do a new thing in us as well. But it’s a lot easier if we invite God in.

Now think about where you’d like to be spiritually in a year.
What are your priorities? Would you like to be more peaceful, more grateful, more involved?
What changes – or even sacrifices – are you willing to make in order to get there?

Only 31% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, although surprisingly nearly half of young people do. The top resolution is to exercise more, and if exercising more gets us closer to God, then that’s great, so I’m not knocking it. 23% said they resolved “to be happier,” while only 6% said they planned to “volunteer more.” I think you can see the problem.

But those who are here today (or reading online) know we need to change. The fact that we repeat communion means that we have a continuing desire to put the past behind us and to press on. And we listen to or read sermons because we suspect there are nuggets of truth we haven’t found, and that we might find some insight. I’m a big fan of keeping things simple, and achievable goals, so I’m going to close with one suggestion: set one spiritual goal for 2026.

It’s okay if the spiritual goal has words like “more” or “better” attached to it ~ for example, “I resolve to be more forgiving in 2026,” or “I resolve to be a better friend.” Even Paul admits that he has not yet achieved his goal, but resolves to try his best. And don’t just make the resolution in your mind; write it down, display it, tell others about it and ask them to hold you accountable. For example, you might write, “I will not dwell on my mistakes” and put it by your bed stand, or “I will believe in other people” and put it at the front door so you see it every time you leave your house, or “I will be a Christian driver” and tape it to the dashboard of your car. And then of course pray about it; ask God to help you, even on the days you fail, and to encourage you to press on.

What is your spiritual resolution for 2026?

May God grant us the grace to achieve our goals, and to press on to the prize he has already won for us, the call to the life above. Amen!

Closing Song: Big Daddy Weave, “All Things New”

Benediction
And now, let us step forward into the new year with hope in our hearts,
knowing that God is in control and that all things will be made new. Amen.