A Message from Pastor Andrea Chaumont

January 1, 2026

Happy New Year MBPPC! The New Year can bring mixed feelings, processing family interactions that happened at Christmas, the rush of getting back into daily routines of work, and glimmers of hope that this year things could be different. I could start that exercise routine, mend that broken relationship…

But what if we start the new year gazing at the baby in the stable - perhaps like the magi, we will find ourselves aiming in a new direction (going home by another way). Are you willing to have your plans interrupted by Jesus this year?

In the Church calendar year, we have already had New Year’s day (the beginning of Advent). I love that in Church time we begin the year in a time of waiting, when all of our longings have not been fulfilled, when we still feel and see the darkness around us. The light shines the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it (John 1:5).

This week, we take a look at Epiphany a little early (it’s Jan. 6). Epiphany comes from the Greek word that means “to reveal” or “manifestation.” For some fun internet reading, Epiphany is celebrated different ways around the world. You can see some of those ways here: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/epiphany_around_the_globe

What is revealed to the magi is perhaps not what they expected. Their lives (and ours) would be forever changed by this baby in a stable.

Blessings,

Pastor Andrea

P.S. for a poem on the Magi, check out T.S. Eliot, Journey of the Magi: https://poets.org/poem/journey-magi