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GospelJn 1:1-18In the beginning was the Word,and the Word was with God,and the Word was God.He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him,and without him nothing came to be.What came to be through him was life,and this life was the light of the human race;the light shines in the darkness,and the darkness has not overcome it.A man named John was sent from God.He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him.He was not the light,but came to testify to the light.The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.He was in the world,and the world came to be through him,but the world did not know him.He came to what was his own,but his own people did not accept him.But to those who did accept himhe gave power to become children of God, to those who believe in his name, who were born not by natural generation nor by human choice nor by a man's decision but of God.And the Word became fleshand made his dwelling among us,and we saw his glory,the glory as of the Father's only-begotten Son,full of grace and truth.John testified to him and cried out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, ‘The one who is coming after me ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.'"From his fullness we have all received,grace in place of grace,because while the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.No one has ever seen God.The only-begotten Son, God, who is at the Father's side, has revealed him.

Today, I begin in silence for the day. I will review what I have done, what I have missed doing, where I have been, what has happened and how I responded. I will seek in silence to see what God's will is for me in the coming year. In silence, it will be a journey to again seek to know God in the present. To see God's hand in the past. And to allow God 's guidance to lead me into the future. In silence there are many simple and wonderful ways that God reaches out to touch my being and remind me who I truly am and what I am meant to be. It is a great blessing to be in a religious community and share this day of silence. I am looking forward to how the day will unfold. Matthew 5 and the Beatitudes are the one area of reading that I have planned. The rest, I will just allow to unfold....

Butterfly Drinking 2004