A New Year’s Blessing to Inspire Connection

When January 1st comes around and you’re still in the post-Christmas fog of pie for breakfast, bits of wrapping paper for decor, and pajamas for all-day-wear; when you don’t know the day or the time or the weather because you’ve been inside for two weeks; when you’re exhausted because your kids aren’t back in school yet and everyone stayed up past midnight to ring in the New Year—this is when you’re expected to make New Year’s resolutions. Does anyone have the energy for that? 

This encouragement from Emily P. Freeman feels appropriate: “January is the new week between Christmas and the new year.” She continues, “In other words, we’ve got time. Reflection is a gift that doesn’t respond kindly to rushing. Take the whole month of January to reflect on 2024 if you’d like. There’s no wrong. Enter gently and with care. You are not behind.”

Make Room for Connection

I’m not the best at making or keeping New Years resolutions. That doesn’t mean I don’t care about self-improvement. I am just better at slow and steady—reading books, using what I need, and leaving the rest. However, I do agree that the natural turn of the calendar from one year to another and modern culture’s influence on our habits makes the new year a convenient time to look back and consider the previous year of your life, and decide if there are things you would like to change.

As you consider your plans for 2025, I hope that you make room for connecting with others. I know that the loneliness that wraps itself around Western society will not be cured in a day. But you and I must each do our part to make ourselves and others feel less lonely. Luckily, the connections you make are mutually beneficial. When you make a connection with someone, not only do you feel less alone, so does the other person.

In The Message version of Galatians 6:9-10, we read, “So let’s not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don’t give up, or quit. Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.”

It’s easy to grow weary when you feel like you are the one always reaching out, when you are tired of going first, and when you work hard to help others feel seen yet still feel invisible yourself. But the encouragement from the apostle Paul is to keep going, because while you may not feel the reward now, a harvest will come later.

Set Your Direction

With the reflection and hope that comes with January, I wrote a blessing that I hope inspires you to draw near—nearer to God, yourself, and others. This year, I want you to feel more seen, more known, more loved. And my prayer is that you give that to others also. But without setting some intentions, our lives continue to drift down the pathway of least resistance. If you’ve gotten into habits of staying home instead of going, saying no instead of saying yes, shutting down instead of showing up, pretending it’s all fine instead of speaking the truth, then you will continue down that path unless you set a new direction.

You don’t need a resolution that says, “I will say yes to every event” or “I will talk to someone everyday.” Even without making a specific resolution, we can set our intention and our direction. The process may be slow, however any move towards God and others is beautiful progress.

Below I offer you my New Year’s blessing to inspire connection:

Before you set out on the journey that is 2025, may you look back and remember.
Remember the hard lessons you learned.
Recall the courage you received.
Recognize the perseverance you practiced.
Throw off the regret and guilt that weighs heavy on your shoulders,
so you can move freely on the path where God is leading you today.
Look back with gratitude for the lessons learned and the hope fulfilled.

As you step your foot onto the pathway of the next 365 days,
Listen for God’s voice, that draws you nearer into His presence.
May you find peace in His closeness,
comfort in His strength,
and hear delight in His voice.

As you face obstacles—
entangled vines of doubt,
large potholes of hesitation,
mountains of insecurity,
even tiny pebbles of discomfort under your feet—
slow down, but never stop.
Remember that’s God’s voice does not stop calling you home.

You will meet fellow travelers along the way.
May you uplift and encourage one another. 
Keep each other faced in the right direction.
Help each other over the mountains, around the potholes, and through the vines.

May you be open to new connections,
available to old friends,
willing to show up, listen, and share.
May your absence be noticed,
and your presence bring warmth to your gatherings.

May you not let anyone walk alone.
Even when at times you feel alone in the wilderness,
keep echoing God’s voice to others.
Comfort with the comfort with which you’ve been comforted.

Always keep your face towards home.
Stay moving in the direction of love and light,
warmth and welcome,
comfort and connection—
these belong not only to others, but also to yourself.

May you feel seen by the God who sees you,
heard by the God who hears your prayers,
restored by the God who allows you to rest,
uplifted by the God who exalts the humbled,
loved by our God who is love,
who gave Himself to be closer to you.

May you never stop walking and doing good.
May you never stop searching for the pathway that leads to home.