>   Starting Point   >

As this new year begins,

and I am caught up

in the crazy rhythm of life’s pendulum,

swinging in oscillations, wide and wild,

from grandiose self-sufficiency

to bleak despair,

without ever pausing,

stopping

at the center point,

the starting point,

I pray, Lord, slow me down.

Slow me down enough

to rest a while  each day

in prayerful reflection,

that I may recognize

in little Gospel glimpses

that the fetus in Mary’s womb,

the Babe in Mary’s arms,

the Man in the river of baptism,

the Convict on a cross,

is God’s creative Word,

God’s Lamb,

God’s gift in my behalf;

and all that’s light and good

and  grace and peace

come from his hand. 

And all my efforts and energies

and good intentions

derive their meaning

from the Starting Point,

the Christ,

the author of every Happy New Year

                                                          rvc

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Greater New Jersey Annual Conference