New Year’s Resolutions

When I was at a diocesan conference in early December we spent some time with icebreakers, whimsical questions that reveal a little bit about those gathered so that everyone has a few factoids for conversational gambits at dinner. One of the icebreakers asked, “What kind of place do you love to visit? a)forest, b)mountains, c)ocean, d)desert, e)large city?”

I love all five, but I chose the desert. There is something about the quiet, the vastness, the minimalism, the surprising life found there. I’m not quite alone in this preference—there were three other people in my group—but we were the oddballs. I remember, though, at my Celebration of New Ministry at Saint Andrew’s, one of the gifts I received was “Wisdom of the Desert,” a book of sayings from the ammas and abbas, the desert mothers and fathers of early Christianity. The desert has an important presence in the history and life of the church!

The desert mothers and fathers fled the confusion of city life for the austerity of the desert, and by radically paring down the shape of their lives experienced the transformative presence of God. In the desert, they embraced a “spirituality of imperfection,” naming and owning all their brokenness, imperfections, struggle, and sin. This new year, as you think about changes you might make in your life, I offer to you some observations drawn from the sayings of the desert mothers and fathers. These suggestions were put together by Bible commentator Dan Clendenin, editor of Journey with Jesus*.

Happy New Year!

Jen+

New Year’s Resolutions collected from the Wisdom of the Desert

1. Never stop starting over: “Abba Poeman said regarding Abba Prin that every day he made a new beginning.” “My God, do not abandon me. I have done nothing good before Thee, but grant me, in Thy compassion, the power to make a start” (Arsenios, 5th century).

2. Live intentionally, not aimlessly: “Think nothing and do nothing without a purpose directed to God. For to journey without direction is wasted effort” (St. Mark the Ascetic, 5th century).

3. Never despair whatsoever: “Let us draw near eagerly to Christ, and let us not despair of our salvation. For it is a trick of the devil to lead us to despair by reminding us of our past sins” (St. Makarios of Egypt, 5th century). “When someone is defeated after offering stiff resistance, he should not give up in despair. Let him take heart, encouraged by the words….God raises up all who are bowed down (Psalm 145:14). Do all in your power not to fall, for the strong athlete should not fall. But if you do fall, get up again at once and continue the contest. Even if you fall a thousand times…rise up again each time” (St. John of Karpathos, date unknown).

4. Pray simply, not stupidly: “Often when I have prayed I have asked for what I thought was good, and persisted in my petition, stupidly importuning the will of God, and not leaving it to Him to arrange things as He knows is best for me. But when I have obtained what I asked for, I have been very sorry that I did not ask for the will of God to be done; because the thing turned out not to be as I had thought” (Evagrios the Solitary, 4th century). Abba Macarius said, “It is enough to say, ‘Lord, as you will, and as you know, have mercy.’ And if the conflict grows fiercer, say: ‘Lord, help!'”

5. Renounce all self-justification: According to John the Dwarf, “We have put aside the easy burden, which is self-accusation, and weighed ourselves down with the heavy one, self-justification.”

6. Stop judging others: “The monk, says Moses, must never judge his neighbor at all in any way whatever.” “They said of Abba Macarius that just as God protects the world, so Abba Macarius would cover the faults he saw, as though he did not see them, and those he heard, as though he did not hear them.”

7. Stay put: Mother Syncletica (4th century), “If you find yourself in a monastery do not go to another place, for that will harm you a great deal. Just as the bird who abandons the eggs she was sitting on prevents them from hatching, so the monk or the nun grows cold and their faith dies when they go from one place to another.” “In Scetis a brother went to Moses to ask for advice. He said to him, ‘Go and sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything.'”

8. Celebrate theological modesty: “St. John Chrysostom says that we do not know wholly even what is given in part, but know only a part of a part” (St. Peter of Damaskos, 12th century).

9. Acknowledge my brokenness: “The person who has come to know the weakness of human nature has gained experience of divine power. Such a person never belittles anyone…He knows that God is like a good and loving physician who heals with individual treatment each of those who are trying to make progress” (St. Maximos the Confessor, 7th century). “A brother said to Abba Theodore, ‘Speak a word to me for I am perishing.’ Sorrowfully, the old man said: ‘I myself am in danger. So what can I say to you?'”

10. Be ruthlessly realistic: “Saint Anthony said to Poemen, ‘expect trials and temptations until your last breath.'” “I am convinced that not even the apostles, although filled with the Holy Spirit, were therefore completely free from anxiety…Contrary to the stupid view expressed by some, the advent of grace does not mean the immediate deliverance from anxiety” (St. Makarios of Egypt, 5th century).

11. Always think good of everyone: “Show the greatest gentleness toward all people” (Evagrios the Solitary, 4th century).

12. Read the obituaries: “When the death of Arsenius drew near, the brothers saw him weeping and asked, ‘Truly, Father, are you afraid?’ ‘Indeed,’ he answered them, ‘the fear which is mine this hour has been with me ever since I became a monk.'” “At the moment of our death we will all know for certain what is the outcome of our life” (St. Gregory of Sinai, 13th century).”

* https://www.journeywithjesus.net/essays/3637-20051226JJ

Rev. Jen has set her office drop-in day as Wednesday of each week from 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. for anyone who would like to stop in and visit. You are always invited to make an appointment for a time convenient for you. Mondays are her Sabbath day.

KROGER COUPONS

If you have any unwanted Kroger coupons, please bring them to Hamilton Hall and place in the window ledge near the “Little Library”. We would like to make them available to our Non-Food Pantry recipients so that they might be able to take advantage of them to help extend their food budget. Thanks in advance!

SACRED POETRY GROUP

Our Sacred Poetry began meeting again. We will meet on occasional Wednesdays at 2:00 p.m. in Hamilton Hall. Contact Rev. Jen if you are interested.

TUESDAY BIBLE STUDY

The Book and Bible Group has begun again, meeting at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesdays with Evening Prayer celebrated at 4:00 p.m.

IMPORTANT SAVE THE DATES

February 2, 2025: Discussion of Parish 2025 Budget and Finances and February 16, 2025: St. Andrew’s Annual Meeting. See more information below.

VESTRY MEETING MINUTES

If any of you are interested in what your Vestry is doing, there are two copies of each month’s minutes on the top of the piano in Hamilton Hall. Feel free to read and return!

THIS WEEK’S SHOPPING LIST FOR NON-FOOD PANTRY

Please add baby wipes, disinfectant wipes, and Adult Depends (any size) to your shopping list for the NFP for the month of January. Meals and conversation in Hamilton Hall are going well. Patrons are now able to pick out items they most need. Your contributions help our budget go farther in helping meet the needs of those in Putnam County. The next Non-Food Pantry will be Saturday, January 25 from noon – 2:00 p.m.

FREE DAILY DEVOTIONAL

We have some large print Day by Day daily devotionals in the sanctuary that you are free to take home for your personal devotions–and if we know that people would like copies, we can order the right amount. Many of you may also appreciate the on-line version of Day to Day. Click here.

ON-GOING COVID PROTOCOL

We continue to respond to both our county’s current CDC designation and to the current variant. Masking is optional. Decisions on COVID policy have moved from the Reconvening Committee to Rev. Jen and the Wardens.

We have heard that the daily reflections and scripture readings provided during Lent were appreciated. The meditations are written by persons from Gobin UMC and Beech Grove UMC. They will be in the newsletter each week. Whether you enjoy these every day or as the Spirit moves you, may this resource continue to bring you spiritual food for the journey. Blessings!

Click here to view the readings and accompanying links.

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