For those who are Christian, the 12 days of Christmas are carrying us out of 2020 and into 2021. Ive never been so excited to see something go. And as helpful as the mental shift of a new year is, I know I could lose touch with this joy if Im not careful.

Joy is that deep current that exists because God exists. Christmas is the celebration of Emmanuel, God with us. Epiphany is not just a day where wise men bring gifts but a season where Jesus is with us healing, feeding, teaching bringing us good news. In a year where doom scrolling has taken over our lives, my Christmas-Epiphany goal is to celebrate the good news. Because it is out there and happening! And it helps that deep current of joy to remember not all is lost. Yes, there will be awful days, but there wont be only awful days. God is with us.

I never do these kinds of things alone. The following good news finds come from friends, parishioners and reasons to be cheerful. I wish you happy hunting in finding and sharing more! May we be intentional about feeding that current of joy, remembering that we are not alone and that there is love and hope out there too.

The pandemic cancelled a Chicago couples wedding. They got stuck with a $5,000 non-refundable catering deposit. What did they do? Had the caterer make Thanksgiving meals for Thresholds, a non-profit with a mission of home, health, and hope for people living with mental illnesses and substance use disorders.

Did you grow up with this table grace? Now thank we all our God, with heart and hands and voices, who wondrous things hath done, in whom his world rejoices; Who from our mothers arms hath blessed us on our way with countless gifts of love, and still is ours today. Martin Rinkart wrote it in 1636 in the midst of unfathomable famine and plague that took his wifes life too. Hes going to be my teacher while I work on my ability to find good news and joy.

London is getting its wildlife back! In 2015 folks set to work, weaving pockets of greenery across rooftops, at street level and along the sides of buildings. The goal was simple: to create pathways of natural habitat along which wildlife can travel and flourish unfettered by human activity. With seven of Londons largest property developers on board, progress has been swift today, more than 2,500 square meters of green space stretch across the cityscape, encompassing dozens of green roofs, flower walls, foliage patches, planters, beehives and boxes inhabited by bats, birds and butterflies.

Lisbon is turning empty Airbnb apartments into affordable housing. The initiative offers landlords up to 1,000 euros per month to lease the apartments to the city for a minimum of five years. The city will then sublet those apartments to locals who qualify for affordable housing. Rents will be capped at one-third of the tenants income. The idea solves two problems at once: it finds a use for the now- vacant apartments while adding affordable housing to the pricey real estate market. So far, nearly 200 owners have signed up.

Back to Chicago and CRED: Create Real Economic Destiny, which works primarily in one of the 15 Chicago neighborhoods responsible for 80 percent of the citys gun violence. The program recruits participants through street outreach, which also works to interrupt violence in real time; pays them to attend counseling, high school classes and job training for nine to 18 months; then helps place them in jobs at one of 40 different Chicago companies.

After three consecutive years of double digit drops in gun violence, shootings in the city are up 51 percent; more than 3,200 people have been shot. But in the far south side neighborhood of Roseland where CRED has operated for the last four years, shootings in 2020 have dropped 33 percent.

How did this start? Someone chose to listen. He asked the same question over and over to dozens of young, mostly African-American, men: How much money would it take for you to put down the guns? For a legal job paying just $12 or $13 an hour less than Chicagos $14/hour minimum wage the men said they would put down their guns and turn away from the life theyd been leading.

Harness that deep current of joy, and lets go change our world.

Kate Payton is pastor at Glendale United Methodist Church in Savage.

Continued here:

Spiritual Reflections: Remember to find joy the new year - SW News Media