Our attention, this week, is once again upon Joseph, along with his brothers.
Oh, what a tangled web this family weaves.
We are surprised at how this saga ends. Is the result merely due to chance?
Is the outcome caused by intentional choices?
Is this the work of Joseph?
Did God have anything to do with it?
The response to our prayer time will be one of many wonderful
hymns of Brian Wren, a delightful man and gifted writer.
I offer these comments concerning this text, written by Michael Hawn,
The hymn was "written for a New Year's Day service [1978] at Holy Family Church, Blackbird Leys, Oxford. In itself, the new year is an arbitrary convention, its "newness" a mere mark on the calendar. The recurrent awakening of life in nature is not a strong enough foundation for hope of real change. Yet by faith in the really new events of the Christian story, a day, or a month, or an hour can become charged with promise, and be a springboard to a changed life."
The hymn is appropriate for any time that the church, the congregation, or an individual discerns the need to make a fresh start in faith. Stanza one appeals to us to "lay to rest the pain that's gone." Stanza two reminds us that the life and death of Christ made it possible for all to have a new beginning as "faith and hope are born again."
Stanza three draws upon 2 Corinthians 5:16-17: "So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" In the spirit of this passage, Dr. Wren asks us to . . . leave behind our disappointment, guilt, and grieving, seeking new paths, and sure to find.
As one of the leading hymn writers of our time, Dr. Wren has contributed more hymns to the United Methodist Hymnal (1989) than any other hymn writer currently living. This text is supported by a melody composed by Dr. Carlton Young, one of the leading tune writers of this day.
This is a day of new beginnings,
time to remember, and move on,
time to believe what love is bringing,
laying to rest the pain that's gone.
For by the life and death of Jesus,
love's mighty Spirit, now as then,
can make for us a world of difference
as faith and hope are born again.
Then let us, with the Spirit's daring,
step from the past, and leave behind
our disappointment, guilt and grieving,
seeking new paths, and sure to find.
Christ is alive, and goes before us
to show and share what love can do.
This is a day of new beginnings;
our God is making all things new.
See you Sunday!
Pastor of Worship, Communication & Liturgical Arts
