Richard Steffen: “A New Thing! Do We Perceive It?”

A New Thing! Do We Perceive It?

by Richard W. Steffen, Minister of Music

“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19 NIV) Even as Isaiah foretold of the Babylonian exile of the Hebrew people, he told of God’s protective love and care for the people. Here is what Barnes’ Notes on the Bible says about this passage: “Something that has not occurred, some unheard of and wonderful event, that shall far surpass all that he had formerly done. It shall spring up as the grass does from the earth; or it shall bud forth like the opening leaves and flowers. The prophet describes the anxious care which God would show in protecting his people.” John Wesley, who - along with his hymn-writing brother Charles - is widely credited with the start of the Methodist movement, wrote about this passage in 1765: “A new thing: such a work as was never yet done in the world. Now the scripture often speaks of things at a great distance of time, as if they were now at hand; to make us sensible of the inconsiderableness of time, and all temporal things, in comparison of God, and eternal things; upon which account it is said, that a thousand years are in God’s sight but as one day.” (Wesley, John. Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament: Harper Collins Publishers Inc.) And hear again these exciting words from the revelation of Jesus Christ to his servant John: “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’ He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ ” (Revelation 21:1-5a NRSV) There it is: NEW!

We recall how we have had open hearts and minds in discerning God’s new work for us in the past. In our Ministry of Music, the addition of handbells by a gift from Alice Kubera 35 years ago created the opportunity for a new dimension to our music program: handbell ensembles. After new hymnals were shared with me at the Conference for Church Musicians at Green Lake, Wi, in 1990, we chose The Worshipping Church as our new hymnal 30 years ago. Our new youth choir Rejoice was started 25 years ago, and musical equipment for that group was purchased through the Robbins Endowment Fund for new ministries. And new percussion equipment for our children’s choirs was purchased two years ago with a gift from Wanda Steffen. All through these years new music has been a part of our worship experiences. New music for choirs brought from national music conferences and all of the new worship songs introduced by our worship music leaders have enriched our worship time together in meaningful, refreshing ways. Then we were blessed by our Tech Team: 14 months of worship services released on Sunday mornings that became “spiritual food” for our souls in our worldwide faith community during this pandemic; from their research and from their experience, we worshipped using the YouTube format a new way. And then we had Christmas 2020 - complete with a virtual cantata by our Worship Choir and Friends – which was truly a new encounter for nearly all of us. So let’s discern the tasks that God has for us to do this new year; let’s really “perceive it.” Let’s pray for the energy we need to respond to God’s plan. Let’s tell the Good News as we are empowered by new things: that new style, that new way, using that renewed energy that God is giving us. Let’s dedicate ourselves to good work as our church proclaims anew that the kingdom of God is here, being that needed salt and light in the world.