From the Congregational Church of Eastford
Well, the holidays are over, and the year 2025 is now fading into the rear-view mirror. The old is gone and the new has come. And with every new year comes new opportunities, new beginnings, and potential for new life.
As a pastor during the Christmas season, it is probably not surprising that I thought a lot about the baby Jesus. This year, our church had a number of new babies in our congregation to choose from to play the key role in our Christmas pageant. A few Sundays ago, I found myself making faces at one of these little ones before the service, trying and failing to earn a smile. If you’ve ever held a newborn, you know that they can’t see very well or very far. But what always surprises me about babies is their ability to find and focus on the faces they know, and recognizing the faces they don’t know yet.
Admittedly, I’m still quite new to the town of Eastford, and because of the small-town New England culture, probably will be for a while. At this point, I probably wouldn’t recognize most of you, and you may not yet recognize me. However, I’d like to share with you something I learned in 2025 that I’d like to pass onto you and encourage you with as you begin dreaming up resolutions for 2026 — human beings need to be recognized.
The moment after a baby is born, when the first few cries of delivery start to quiet, newborns typically spend an hour or so in a stage doctors call “quiet alert.” Though they can’t see great, they are searching for a face, and when they find one, they fix their eyes on it. From the first moments of life, a person seeks to be recognized and seen. As we grow and mature, this need does not go away.
Entering into 2026, there are two truths that seem paradoxical but are simultaneously true — our world is more connected than ever, and our world is lonelier than ever. Though it is beautiful living out here in the Quiet Corner, it is also very easy to go unseen for long periods of time. Perhaps you are feeling this loneliness as the holiday season fades and family trips come to an end. Whoever you are, I’m excited to tell you, there is a community that is always here for you in Eastford, with two different locations, and that is the family of God. The Congregational Church of Eastford and Eastford Baptist Church are not buildings. They are communities where you will be welcomed, recognized and loved all year round.
There is no entrance fee, no deeds that can be done to earn your way into the family of God. Jesus is the way, the door, and the gate. He said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” and I’d like to invite you to join in on this truth and life. I’d love to meet you, and please know you are always welcome to join our church family for a Sunday morning at the school gym at 10 a.m., or a Tuesday night at Eastford Baptist at 5:30 p.m. May 2026 be a year where you find the love of the One who is always there, waiting for you to gaze back at Him!