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Good day Dear Hearts, I love you. Happy New Year! Welcome 2026! My prayer for all of Suski is that God bless us, watch over us, and reveal Himself more to us. A new year always invites reflection. Not the shallow kind of reflection that fuels slogans like "new year, new me," but the deeper, quieter kind; the kind that asks, Lord, what are You doing in us, through us, and around us? As we step into 2026, we do so with a unique awareness of time. This year marks 250 years since the early days of our nation's birth in January 1776, when the seeds of independence were already stirring in the hearts of ordinary people who sensed that history was shifting. They didn't know what the future would hold, but they believed in something larger than themselves. They believed in Providence. They believed that God was at work. And here we are, two and a half centuries later, still asking the same questions: What is God doing in our time? What is He calling us to become? How do we walk faithfully into a future we cannot see? A New Year Is not about reinvention, It's about reorientation. Scripture never tells us to reinvent ourselves. It tells us to return. Return to the Lord. Return to His ways. Return to His purposes. Return to His presence. The world loves the idea of self-reinvention because it puts us in the center. But the Gospel calls us to something far better: "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths" (Proverbs 3:6). A new year is not a blank canvas for self-creation; it is an altar where we lay down our plans and ask God to shape our steps. In that sense, the new year is less about what we will do and more about who we will follow.

When we think of 1776, we think of July 4th. But the story began long before fireworks and declarations. In January of that year, pamphlets, sermons, and conversations were stirring the colonies toward a new identity. People were wrestling with fear, uncertainty, and hope. They were not yet a nation; they were a people in transition. And transitions are sacred spaces. Before independence came dependence. Before freedom came faith. Before a nation was formed, hearts were being shaped. Many of the early leaders spoke openly about their belief that God was guiding history. They didn't claim perfection, nor should we pretend they had it all right. But they understood something we often forget; nations rise and fall, but God's purposes endure. As we mark 250 years since those early days, we are invited to remember that our story as a nation has always been intertwined with questions of identity, purpose, and moral responsibility. The same God who was present then is present now, not as a mascot for political agendas, but as the Lord of history who calls every generation to humility, justice, and righteousness.

Anniversaries can tempt us to nostalgia. But biblical remembrance is never about longing for the past; it's about learning from it. When God told Israel to remember, He wasn't asking them to idolize yesterday. He was teaching them to recognize His faithfulness so they could trust Him for tomorrow. So, as we reflect on 250 years of national history, we do so with gratitude, honesty, and humility. Gratitude for blessings we did not earn. Honesty about failures we must not repeat. Humility that acknowledges our dependence on God. This kind of remembrance doesn't trap us in the past; it equips us for the future. If 1776 was a year of becoming, perhaps 2026 can be a year of returning. Not returning to an era, but returning to a posture. Not returning to a political ideal, but returning to a spiritual foundation. Not returning to the "good old days," but returning to the God who is good in every day. Faithfulness in 2026 might look like: Choosing prayer over panic. Practicing kindness in a culture of outrage. Seeking wisdom instead of noise. Loving our neighbors without conditions. Living with integrity when shortcuts seem easier. Trusting God when the world feels unstable. These are not dramatic acts. They are daily ones. But daily obedience has always been how God shapes history.

As we enter 2026, we do so with the same uncertainty the colonists felt in 1776. They didn't know what the year would bring. We don't either. But we know the One who holds the year. The most important direction in a new year is not forward; it is upward. When we look forward, we see uncertainty. When we look backward, we see complexity. But when we look upward, we see clarity. We see the God who is faithful in every generation. We see the God who guided our forebears through storms. We see the God who calls us to walk by faith, not by sight. We see the God who is still writing the story of our lives and our nation. So, as we step into 2026, we do so with hearts anchored in Him. Not reinventing ourselves. Not clinging to the past. Not fearing the future. But walking faithfully, humbly, and hopefully with the God who has carried us for 250 years – and will carry us still. God Bless.

Lord, as we stand at the doorway of a new year, we pause to thank You for Your faithfulness through every season behind us. For the lessons learned, the strength gained, the grace received, and the hope sustained, we give You praise Father, we ask your blessing on our little town. Send your Spirit and touch the broken-hearted, give peace to the sick, bless the poor. Pastor Vince Chiaramonte, 570-853-3988.