1/1/2025

“Change. But start slowly, because direction is more important than speed.”
​— Attributed to Paulo Coelho, author of The Alchemist

“The more I practice, the luckier I get.” 
— Attributed to Gary Player, South African golfer. 

“Rabbit! Rabbit!”
— Pastor Terry on January 1. 

Happy New Year! And . . . Merry Christmas! (it’s only the 8th day – you have 4 more days to celebrate!).

I love the traditions around the New Year. Growing up in the South, we always had some sort of greens along with black-eyed peas and hog jowl on New Year’s Day. Later on, while living in Kentucky, I had some Yankee friends who introduced me to Corned Beef and cabbage for New Years, so that’s been part of the menu ever since. 

And cornbread. But that goes without saying (and, no, there’s no sugar in cornbread. Sweet cornbread isn’t cornbread – it’s CAKE!). 

Mom always said to be careful what you did on New Year’s Day, because what you did on that day is what you’ll be doing the rest of the year. And it was always important to have your pantry full on New Year's Day, because that meant you’d have a bountiful New Year.

But wait! There’s more! 

The first day of every month is called “Rabbit Day.” This silly practice dates back maybe as early as the 13th century. On the first day of the month, before your foot hits the ground and before any other words come out of your mouth, yell “Rabbit! Rabbit!” at the top of your lungs, and you’ll have good luck all month. There are variations on this, by the way. In some cultures, you yell, “White rabbits!” and in others, you just have to say “Rabbits” first thing (this was President Franklin Roosevelt’s practice). 

Now if you do this on the first day of the new year, that guarantees good luck for the entire year! 

My mom would start the day by saying, “Good morning, Lord.” That was every day except the first day of the month. On that day it was, “Rabbit! Rabbit!” and then, “Good morning, Lord!” 

Of course, all that’s for fun. I ascribe to the philosophy of Gary Player I quoted at the top of this Pastor’s Note: “The more I practice, the luckier I get.” 

We create our luck – well, we have to take into account the grace of God, as well. But things that matter don’t often just fall into our laps because we’re lucky. Things that matter call for some disciplined effort on our part. 

Mark Manson in a blog entitled, “The Most Important Question of Your Life,” writes, “What we get out of life is not determined by the good feelings we desire, but by what bad feelings we’re willing and able to sustain to get us to those good feelings.”

As a musician, the most obvious example of that is practicing the piano. I was talking to someone the other day who wanted to play the piano – and would be able to play, had he actually practiced when he was younger. And it’s not that he wants to practice now . . . he just wants to play!

Well, who wouldn’t! 

But everything worthwhile doing in life calls for effort and even a little pain, a little sacrifice now so we can benefit later on. That’s part of the philosophy behind Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace. We do the work now so that later we can relax and reap the benefits of the work. Or, as Dave puts it, “If you live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.” 

So this would be a good question to ask ourselves as we look at the dawning of 2025: “What are you willing to struggle for?” 

Happiness requires struggle. You want the beach? Then you also want the traffic you have to endure to get there. You want a beach body? Then you also want the perspiration, the soreness, the early morning walks or work-outs or whatever else it costs to get it. You can’t stop at just wanting the results; you have to want the process as well. 

And it is a process. As the first quote at the top says, “Change. But start slowly, because direction is more important than speed.” 

All this is true of the Spiritual Disciplines as well. One of the keys to growing closer to the Lord is through reading the Bible, but I know how daunting that can be. For the first quarter of 2025, I’m inviting you to join me in reading one chapter a day of the gospels. Just one chapter. The more you read it, the more you’ll love it, and the more you’ll fall in love with the Lord to whom the gospels witness. 

Wishing you a blessed and happy 2025! 

Blessings,
Pastor Terry

PS:  In my sermon Sunday, I mentioned the recording, “Christmas on Sugarloaf Mountain.” Here’s a medley from the album. About 2:10 into it, you’ll hear “Breakin’ Up Christmas,” the song that inspired our annual end of the season celebration. 
Cold Frosty Morning / Old Christmas / Breakin’ Up Christmas (Arr. René Schiffer, Jeannette...