Happy New Year!

Blessings to you on this first day of a brand new year!

Here I am with my Framed in Faith family planner, wishing I had a slice of peace and quiet to pore over it and set my mind right for the month and year ahead. A marching band is blaring on the TV. There are serious negotiations occurring about a certain someone cleaning her room. Dinner (Leftovers Galore!) is waiting to be heated and served. This is not the ideal time to start.

Is there ever an ideal time to turn over a new leaf? Aren't all fresh starts rather arbitrary? Hmmm....

So I'm setting wishful and rueful thinking aside and rededicating myself to the Lord in the midst of the disorder and noise and disruptions ("Honey, where is the atlas? No, the other atlas?"). This is when I need God most, anyways. It is easy to turn to God in quiet, dedicated times. But I REALLY need my Divine Creator's peace and grace ("You know I have a rehearsal on Sunday?") in the loud, frenzied times of each day. I need God's word, presence, and guidance in the messiness of life.

That's what led me to create this faith-based family planner. Now, in this new year, I resolve to use it to infuse our family life with the goodness of God. I invite you to join this journey and conversation – whether you have the actual planner or not, whether it's a daily ritual or a sporadic check up. "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20) God, join us in cyber space, in our daily lives, and help us to truly feel your Holy Spirit in the midst of our daily lives and this promising New Year.