A Resolution Epiphany

Megan Cottam finds inspiration for her family's New Year's resolution in a household Epiphany Blessing.

I’ll be honest. I have mixed feelings about New Year’s resolution season. Between the guilt-ridden goals to look better or do more, the temptation for self-centered navel-gazing, and the thinly veiled marketing gimmicks, I’m not excited to set goals on a prescribed January timeline. A natural southerner, I also lack winter motivation for pretty much anything. I’d much prefer hiding under a blanket fort with my kids and a good cup of tea until at least April.

Despite my hesitations, I do recognize that this is a fresh start for many of us. I’ve watched friends accomplish some amazing things for themselves, their families, and for God, thanks to the intentionality that this turning of the calendar provides. The act of reflecting and growing is certainly graced by God.

With this in mind, how is the Lord guiding our steps in 2023?

Rather than set our own expectations for the year, we need to humble ourselves enough to accept that maybe we don’t know everything we need, but others with different perspectives and wisdom might. The one person who knows all these things is our Lord. Thanks be to God!

God seeks our dependence. I was both challenged and comforted by this proverb:

All one’s ways are pure in one’s own eyes, but the measurer of motives is the Lord. Entrust your works to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. (Proverbs 16:2-3)

What can I accomplish? What do I need to add or subtract in my life? These questions are best answered by the God who loves me and not my own guilt, attachments, or wishful thinking. We get much further when we depend on God to set our course.

In this attempt to leave my heart open to the Lord’s will, I stumbled across an attic box with an Epiphany blessing in it. Our parish had blessed chalk and sent it home to families during the pandemic for us to bless our homes. As I perused the language of the prayer, God spoke His resolutions for my family:

May all who enter this home find Christ’s light and love … Fill us with the light of Christ, that our concern for others may reflect your love. (from Catholic Household Blessings & Prayers, USSCB Publishing)

What does faithful hospitality mean in a family context?

We think of the cooking and cleaning, the planned events, or the physical things, but the hospitality that Christs asks of us is a disposition.

If someone knocked on your door this very second, are you able to serve them willingly? Or was your first thought the panic of what your house looks like, the state of your marker-covered children, your teenager’s still-asleep death gaze, or even your well-planned to-do list for the day that you would need to surrender? Perhaps it’s the fact that you did not make it to the grocery store and have nothing impressive to feed anyone, or that you feel unworthy to serve.

None of these conditions that we place on “proper” hospitality matter to the child Jesus and his Holy Family. They should not matter to you either. Can your family provide the opportunity for Christ’s light and love? Is there a neighbor in need of attention—someone who lost a spouse, lost their way, or simply someone who needs a break? Does your family need to invite someone in to challenge you all to new ideas and deeper faith?

Your family has a mission to be open to the community needs around you, and to offer Christ’s light whenever the opportunity presents itself (Hint: There’s always an opportunity!).

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Your family has a mission to be open to the community needs around you, and to offer Christ’s light whenever the opportunity presents itself. #catholicmom

Let the kids set the table askew. Sit and chat with the neighbor in need, even it means calling in some takeout for dinner. Linger at coffee and donuts after Mass with a fellow parishioner who needs to interact with some sugar-filled children. When you kids notice someone suffering, help them to act on that observation. Let the routine run amuck. Open your hearts to how Christ wishes to reflect His love through your family this year. As the proverb states, His plans will succeed if you let them.

Wishing you a blessed 2023, dependent on God and open for His will in your family’s life.

Copyright 2023 Megan Cottam
Images copyright 2023 Megan Cottam, all rights reserved.