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FAITH: Behold, I Make All Things New

A column from Castlegar pastor Robin Pengelly
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Robin Pengelly is the pastor of Castlegar United Church.

Happy 2025!

The new year is a time for reflecting on our own desires and making resolutions about ways to make those desires become reality in the next 12 months. This will likely be followed shortly by breaking or abandoning these resolutions, because the truth is, if these things were easy, we would have already done them. They usually require something we don't have, such as time or self discipline or resilience in the face of failure. 

This fall, a group of us got together at my church to explore the role of God and community in our physical health as we age in something we call “Faithful Fitness." On Monday mornings, we read a devotional, spent some time in prayer, and then followed along a gentle exercise video designed for seniors. We learned two main things; that we needed to look beyond ourselves to be successful in our exercise goals, and that we needed to be present to the moment. We start again Jan. 27. 

Most people have heard the advice that you're more likely to follow through on your exercise plans if you have an exercise buddy, which is true. But looking beyond ourselves can also be an expression of love and gratitude, to others and especially to God. Taking care of our physical bodies can be a way to say thank you to the Creator for giving us life and for the many good things that being alive has enabled us to experience and to do. It can be a way of showing love to our families and friends with whom we want to share a long and active life.

Being present to the moment has helped us appreciate the miracle of our bodies. We don't dwell on the things we used to be able to do but might not be able to anymore. That just sets us up for feelings of failure. We don't think about the things we have to do later. That just fills us with negative energy, be it wanting to be doing something else or dreading doing it. We need positive energy to do our best in the here and now and in the company of our friends exercising with us.

God calls us not to dwell on what is past but to notice how God is doing new things all the time (Isaiah 43:18-19).

What new thing is God doing in you?

Robin Pengelly is the pastor of Castlegar United Church.