CHRIST’S MESSENGER Christ Lutheran Church and Preschool, Eagan, MN Church and Preschool
FROM THE PASTOR by Pastor Hahn Star of Hope for a New Year
Staff Rev. David Hahn Senior Pastor
Rev. Michael Heggen Visitation Pastor
Alex Mezeritski
The ball that drops at Times Square is called the "Star of Hope" and on its face are the "wishes" of our nation for courage, peace, fellowship etc. But if we listen to Scripture, we have a hope based on something more than "wishing upon a star." On New Year's Eve at 11:59 pm, over one billion people all across the world watched as the “ball” drops in New York City’s Times Square. Here is a little history about the New Year’s Eve “ball”.
Director of Music
Michele Lukanen
Director of Preschool
Julia Bonewell
Preschool Teacher
Judy Kaner
Preschool Aide
Rhoda Houge
Church Secretary
Christ Lutheran Church and Preschool 1930 Diffley Road Eagan, MN 55122 Church: 651-454-4091 christlutheraneagan@outlook.com www.christlutheraneagan.org Christ Lutheran Church is a congregation of The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod
Christ Lutheran Church is a growing body of believers in Jesus Christ, sharing the love, word, and grace of God with our family, community, and world.
January, 2017
The 1st "time-ball" was installed on top of England’s Royal Observatory at Greenwich in 1833 After the success of that event, approximately 150 such time-balls were installed around the world. But few survive and still work. The tradition is carried on today in places like the United States Naval Observatory in Washington, DC, where a time-ball descends from a flagpole at noon each day - and of course, once a year in Times Square, where it marks the stroke of midnight. New York actually held a New Year's celebration as early as 1904, but it wasn’t until 1907 that they “dropped” an iron and wood ball and adorned with a hundred 25-watt light bulbs. It was 5 feet in diameter and weighed 700 pounds From that date until today, the ball has dropped every year except 1942 and 1943 during the City’s WWII “dim-outs”. Crowds still gathered in Times Square during those years and greeted the New Year with a moment of silence followed by chimes ringing out from One Times Square. Over the years, the “time-ball” has undergone about 4 re-designs – the most recent one was created for the Millennial celebration in the year 2000 by Waterford Crystal. It’s a geodesic sphere, six feet in diameter, and weighing approximately 1,070 pounds. It’s covered with a total of 504 crystal triangles that vary in size. And each of those triangles has a special designation: Hope for Fellowship, Hope for Peace, Hope for Wisdom, Hope for Unity, Hope for Courage, Hope for Healing, etc.
Why would they call the New Year’s ball the “Star of Hope?” Because each new year is a time for hope. It’s a time for opportunity. It’s a time for us to grasp hold of our future/ our destiny. Proverbs 17:24 tells us is that: we have the opportunity to “lay hold of our destiny and future” for this coming New Year. The hope for our future depends upon us. But that hope doesn’t lie in “wishing upon a star” - which is essentially what those triangles on the Star of Hope actually are all about. The “hope” for fellowship, peace, wisdom, courage and so on are not based upon promises, but upon a wish for what we’d like to see take place in the next year. Proverbs 24 is saying that the Wise man has a powerful future waiting for him because he keeps his eyes on wisdom. By contrast, the fool has his eyes on something else… his eyes are on the ends of the earth. What’s the difference between the two? “The fool’s eyes,” says Proverbs, “wander to the ends of the earth.” He’s always looking for an easy way to get ahead in his life. He’s the guy who invests in the future by buying lottery tickets. He can’t seem to stay married because no person is ever good enough. He can’t keep a job because no job is good enough. He can’t stay in one church, because no church is good enough. There is always a rainbow waiting for them over the next hill. Their eyes wander constantly to the ends of the earth. They are constantly