Prayer for a New Year

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Prayer for a New Year

December 31st, 2015

God of our beginning and our end,
as the sun sets on yet another year,
we reflect upon the ways you guided us
     in our struggles...
     in our celebrations...
     in our transitions...
     in our sorrows...
We have had moments of supreme joy,
and moments of deepest darkness.
From one end to the other,
you have been there to laugh with us and to cry with us.
In this Christmas season,
we give thanks that in our laughter and in our tears,
you are with us as one of us.
As we turn the page to the new year,
we pray with all our hearts that this year would be one of new things...
     that this year would not have any gun violence...
     that this year would be free of human trafficking...
     that this year would bring us an end to racial discrimination...
     that this year would be absent of domestic violence and substance abuse...
Gracious God,
some would say these prayers are unrealistic,
that it is foolish to wish for such abrupt change.
And yet, we trust that all things are possible through you
and that our prayers themselves transform us
that we would actively pursue redemption
for you have already redeemed us.
Be with us in this new year,
hold us as you have done since before we were born,
love us as you have done from of old,
guide us with the presence of your Spirit
that we might walk humbly with you in all that we say and do.  Amen.

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Stephen Fearing

Stephen was born in 1988 in Cookeville, TN, where his parents met whilst attending Tennessee Tech. Shortly after, they moved to Dalton, Georgia where they put down roots and joined First Presbyterian Church, the faith family that taught Stephen that he was first and foremost a beloved child of God. It was this community that taught Stephen that it was OK to have questions and doubts and that nothing he could do could every possibly separate him from the love of God. In 1995, his sister, Sarah Kate, joined the family and Stephen began his journey as a life-long musician. Since then, he has found a love of music and has found this gift particularly fitting for his call to ministry. Among the instruments that he enjoys are piano, trumpet, guitar, and handbells. Stephen has always had a love of singing and congregation song. An avid member of the marching band, Stephen was the drum major of his high school's marching band. In 2006, Stephen began his tenure at Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC where he majored in Religion and minored in History. While attending PC, Stephen continued to explore his love of music by participating in the Wind Ensemble, Jazz Band, Jazz Combo, Jazz Trio, as well as playing in the PC Handbell ensemble and playing mandolin and banjo PC's very own bluegrass/rock group, Hosegrass, of which Stephen was a founding member (Hosegrass even released their own CD!). In 2010, Stephen moved from Clinton to Atlanta to attend Columbia Theological Seminary to pursue God's call on his life to be a pastor in the PC(USA). During this time, Stephen worked at Trinity Presbyterian Church, Silver Creek Presbyterian Church, Central Presbyterian Church, and Westminster Presbyterian Church. For three years, Stephen served as the Choir Director of Columbia Theological Seminary's choir and also served as the Interim Music Director at Westminster Presbyterian Church. In 2014, Stephen graduated from Columbia with a Masters of Divinity and a Masters of Arts in Practical Theology with an emphasis in liturgy, music, and worship. In July of 2014, Stephen was installed an ordained as Teaching Elder at Shelter Island Presbyterian Church in Shelter Island, NY. Later that year, Stephen married the love of his life, Tricia, and they share their home on Shelter Island with their Golden Doodle, Elsie, and their calico cat, Audrey. In addition to his work with the people who are Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, Stephen currently serves as a commission from Long Island Presbytery to the Synod of the Northeast and, beginning in January of 2016, will moderate the Synod's missions team.