January 2026

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. - Isaiah 60:1

I was recently reading about a scientific study where the research participants were given mazes. They were just lines on the paper, but they were told to help a cartoon mouse to make it from one side of the maze to the other. In one version of the maze, there was a cartoon owl that loomed ominously over the page, hunting the mouse. In the other version, the mouse was searching for a a little piece of cheese at the end of the maze.

The study was curious to find out: Which group would complete the maze faster, the ones moving towards the cheese or those fleeing from the owl?

Now keep in mind, there was no mouse, no cheese and no owl, except for the cartoon on the page. Funny enough, the cheese group completed more mazes, more quickly. Even just the imagination of a reward was more motivating than running away from an imagined threat.

It makes perfect sense if you think about it. When we’re moving towards something, towards our hopes, towards a goal, towards a vision of the future, we get focused on the outcome that we want. But when we’re just moving away from something we fear, we’re only motivated to avoid the threat.

Arise, shine; for your light has come!

Matthew quotes Isaiah’s call to help us see the visit of the Magi in terms of the bigger picture of what God is doing through Jesus.

In these weeks after Christmas, we begin the season of Epiphany. We’ll begin alongside the Magi on their journey towards the star in the east and the baby Jesus. As we move through the story of Jesus’ baptism and the call of the disciples, we’re reminded that we’re part of a story that keeps us moving.

Later in the month, we’ll read John’s Gospel’s story of the call of the disciples. Just like the other Gospels, when Jesus calls the disciples, he says: Follow Me. The thing that’s special about John’s Gospel is that he relates how one disciple called another. When Philip first met Jesus, he glimpsed in Jesus the promise of God and the messiah that he’d been hoping for. So, Philip reached out to his friend Nathanael and told him: “Come and See.”

Since back in August, we’ve been exploring the possibility of a New Creation alongside Faith-Lilac Way and Cross of Glory. These past few months have been an intentional time of relationship building and discovering what might be possible together. So far, we’ve had a Pulpit Swap in November (where each pastor visited each of the other churches); we’ve had a monthly New Creation Potluck on the third Wednesday (something we’ll do again on January 21st at 5:30 at Faith-Lilac Way); and throughout December, on Wednesday evenings we had our Advent services and sang Holden Village.

In January, despite the cold weather and short days, we’ll be casting a vision. In anticipation of the Annual Meeting on January 25th after worship, we’ll be having conversations about the budget and the opportunity to continue our journey alongside Cross of Glory and Faith-Lilac Way towards a consolidation and the formation of a New Creation together.

Arise, shine; for your light has come!

In this season of light and life and hope, God is leading us into a vision of a future where we get to follow Jesus into deeper relationships, into the world and into our neighborhood together.

Thanks be to God and Happy New Year!

Pr Colin