Have you been thinking about the coming year, 2025? It’s a brand-new year and we are programmed to think about our goals and dreams for the year? Are there things that you plan to change? Are there places you plan to visit and people you want to see? Have you made plans for things you want to accomplish? Do you have goals or dreams for your relationship with Christ and the work of the church? I would not be surprised if you have been doing some dreaming for the New Year. I have a few dreams and goals for 2025 of my own.
It is a good thing to have some goals and dreams. It gives us some direction for our lives. Martin Luther King Jr. was someone we all know about, who had dreams for equality, respect and love for all people. Even God has a dream that all of us will one day want to have a great loving relationship with Him and with each other.
Sometimes we are required to make some tough sacrifices to accomplish our goals. There are many examples of the kinds of sacrifices people make for their dreams. For example, Martin Luther King was not popular with everyone. He suffered ridicule and even lost his life as he worked to bring his dreams to life. And how can we overlook that Our Father God gave his Son…Jesus giving his life…as a sacrifice for our sins so that we could understand the depth of His love for us; and so, we might choose to have an intimate relationship with his Son and Himself.
I have some dreams and goals for the coming year. A personal goal of mine is to take better care of myself. I have goals for my continuing work at the church.
I hope that some of your goals and dreams involve the church and the ministries that we do together. Our commitment to Christ and to each other will make it possible to bring some of them to life. God needs us to dream for the church, and God needs us to work with each other.
So go ahead, dream and set goals for the New Year. Nurture all of your dreams…personal and church ministry goals…through a solid prayer life. Seek God’s guidance and invite the Holy Spirit to empower you through the challenging steps of fulfilling a dream. May God bless you and all of your dreams for the New Year.

Wishing you a Happy New Year, Pastor Twyla

May the Joy of Christ be born again in your heart this Christmas.
Merry Christmas! from the staff at Hagerstown Church of the Brethren,
Allyson, Burt, Don, Pastor Twyla

“Christmas Time”
By Lenora McWhorter

At Christmas, lights burn brighter,
and friendly hugs get even tighter.
The spirit of Christmas fills the air,
and people seem to really care.

Merry hearts are filled with cheer.
Families and friends all draw near.
The streets around are all filled
despite the cold winter chill.

Everywhere there’s smiling faces,
giving and receiving warm embraces.
And for a time, sadness disappears.
Peace, joy and hope replaces fear.

All because God’s love came down
and filled the earth all around.
So, we celebrate at Christmas time
our Savior and Lord, holy, divine!

We honor Jesus throughout the year
so, the Christmas spirit will linger near.
For the story of His birth is ours to tell
that Jesus became our Emmanuel!

When November arrives, many of us start to think about Thanksgiving. Our thoughts bring to mind things like: family gatherings, turkey and stuffing, pumpkin pie, days off from work or school, pilgrims and things that we are thankful for in our lives. The idea of thankfulness is, of course, our focus for celebrating Thanksgiving.

But I wonder, is there more? Is there more to this holiday than feelings of thankfulness, and offering our gratitude to God for all that God has done in our lives and for all that God has  given to us?

Recently I read a Thanksgiving dialogue out of an old book sitting on my shelf. The dialogue focused on the meaning of the holiday. An interesting point that was made in the dialogue was that all Christians are pilgrims. Like the pilgrims from the early days of our country’s history that we think of on Thanksgiving, we are a wandering people. Although we are not living in a new and strange land; we are living in challenging times and seeking to journey our way through our days as disciples of Christ.

Pilgrims are everyday people caring for each other and for the needs of strangers. They are people who are faithful and willing to step out in faith to live each day without knowing exactly where God will lead them and use them; but knowing that God is with them. God’s pilgrim people are trusting. They put their trust in God to provide the rain and the sunshine to help our fields and gardens flourish with food. Pilgrim people trust God for all of their needs…they recognize their need for God.

There is, indeed, something more to Thanksgiving than just saying thank you to God. It’s about you and me being God’s pilgrims; giving thanks…AND living thanks. We live our thanks by wandering faithfully into the familiar and unknown places of life, caring for the needs of others, and putting all of our trust in God. Pilgrims of God, have a blessed Thanksgiving.

Pastor Twyla