A Worthy New Year’s Resolution 1.5.25

While growing up I worshiped at Mineral Baptist Church on Louisa Avenue in the town of Mineral, Virginia. And though I was worshiping on the same street today, I was not at Mineral Baptist. Today I found myself worshiping at the Church of the Incarnation, a small Episcopal Church that is so unnoticeable that I never realized it even existed. In fact, if you had asked me before being invited by our friend Hillary if there was an Episcopal Church in Mineral, Virginia, I would have told you no.

Mineral is not a big town.  It currently has a population of around 470 people, which was about the same population during the time I was growing up in the area. So not knowing that there was an Episcopal Church in town is saying a lot. Evidently, this church was built in 1902, the same year Mineral was established.  Tradition has it that the church building is located on the same spot where a drinking tavern sat.  The town elders decided a church was needed for the then boisterous mining town and so, an Episcopal Church was built.  It would take the Episcopalians to tear down a drinking tavern and build a church on the same site!

So, how did I end up at this old church listening to our friend Hillary, a retired Episcopal Priest, give a wonderful sermon inside this beautiful building?  Although I grew up a Baptist, I married a Presbyterian.  So, I started out my married life worshiping as a Presbyterian. And due to lots of circumstances, Elizabeth and I would eventually end up worshiping at a new Episcopal Church in the far west end of Richmond.  That church would become our place of worship for the next 30+ years. And that is where we met our friend Hillary.

Hillary was an assistant rector at that church – Christ Church Episcopal Richmond.  Christ Church was Hillary’s first calling as a priest.  And we became fast friends.  Hillary eventually left to take a position outside of Philadelphia. And I would visit Hillary and her husband Fred when I was in the area, staying in touch over the years. So, when she sent a Christmas Card this year informing us that she preaches 20 minutes away in Mineral on the first and third Sundays of the month and invited us to visit, we did not hesitate. 

As we sat down and the service started, it hit home why liturgical services are so powerful.  It does not matter what Episcopal Church you attend – the liturgy is the same, giving you a sense of familiarity and comfort.  So, even though this was the first time I had attended this church, it felt very comfortable and familiar.  I guess it did not hurt that our friend Hillary, who we love, was conducting the service.

The scripture on this first Sunday of the new year centered on the wise men who had come to visit Jesus after his birth. But Hillary did something very special with this piece of scripture.  She took a recent experience at a roadside diner on New Years Eve and made that the center of her message.  As she and Fred were leaving the diner, the server they had met at the diner had told them to “look for the good.”  And Hillary decided that is exactly what the three wise men were doing – looking for the good.

During the time of Jesus’ birth, it was hard to look for the good. Jewish society was oppressed under Roman rule, there was economic hardship, and there was a lot of division among the Jews themselves. Even Jewish religion had become very legalistic. And then good news! And the wise men sought out this good news. They looked for it.

And as we look for good in 2025, Hillary suggests we do three things, just as the three wise men did.  First, have purpose and direction on how you will look for good.  The wise men had a star to follow.  Decide on your “North Star.”  Let this be your overriding charge. Be specific in how you will look for good.

Second, try to do this with others.  The wise men had each other to “keep the faith” and to continue their journey to this good news.  As you look for good, enlist others as a part of your own journey.  Third, once you have direction and have others by your side, look for good with energy and vigor, just as the wise men did. 

So, I am glad that Hillary decided that “Looking for the Good” is a worthy New Years Resolution for 2025. And I am glad she shared that with us.

And as I sat there contemplating the simplistic beauty of Hillary’s New Years Resolution, I thought back to when I was a teenager worshiping at Mineral Baptist Church.  Never in a million years would I have thought that I would be back in Mineral 45 years later getting my New Year’s Resolution from an Episcopal Priest at a Church I did not even know existed. Life is funny indeed.