A New Year

“The Lord’s word came to me:

“Before I created you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I set you apart;
I made you a prophet to the nations.” “Ah, Lord God,” I said, “I don’t know how to speak
because I’m only a child.”

The Lord responded, “Don’t say, ‘I’m only a child.’ Where I send you, you must go;
what I tell you, you must say. Don’t be afraid of them, because I’m with you to rescue you,”
declares the Lord.

Then the Lord stretched out his hand, touched my mouth, and said to me, “I’m putting my words in your mouth.
This very day I appoint you over nations and empires, to dig up and pull down, to destroy and demolish,
to build and plant.”

Today begins a new school year for Cleburne Independent School District and with this new year comes lots of excitement, hesitation, and new experiences. The first day of school is always refreshing to me because everyone gets a fresh start, but at the same time it reminds me of what has not changed from one year to the next. 

I am often reminded of this passage from Jeremiah because this is a truth or all of Christ’s disciples. All of us are called and are set apart by God himself to be an ambassador for love and grace, but what is so awesome about God is that He wants us as we are right now to represent Him. He loves us for who we are, right now! 

So the only question is are you going to say yes to being a vessel for Christ’s light? 

Today is no different than any day expressed in scripture and in fact today you are given the opportunity to answer these questions: 

Will we open our eyes, our ears? What will we do with what we see, with what we hear? How will we bear the terrible delight of the blessing that blazes before us, that burns within us?

There are people that don’t know about love and grace and it is our responsibility that they do. We can do something right now about changing lives. In your school, your work, your relationships, you have been appointed as a prophet to open your eyes and your ears, to not just see what’s going on but to put Christ’s love into action. 

God the author of everything wants you for you. 

So won’t you say yes? Let’s together shine His light into the darkness and change lives and change the fingerprint and identity of this community to be about the light, love, grace, peace, and community of Christ! 

Amen.