Pastor Heidi reflects on her star word

On the first Sunday of 2025, I chose a star word* out of the basket. It was the only card that was facing up, as if God was saying, “Here, Heidi. This one is for you.” 

The word was Eunoia and underneath it was written the words (Greek) beautiful thinking. 

Rus (my husband) lovingly teases me that God and I have a very direct relationship—when God speaks to me, I hear it loud and clear and I know exactly what God is saying. There’s no, “God, I don’t understand… what do you mean?” God speaks, and my response is, “Ah. Got it.” (Or more often I sigh and think, “Really? Do I have to?”)

When I read the “beautiful thinking,” my mind immediately went to how critical I’d been about myself in recent weeks. Thoughts like, “Why did you do that?” “You’re so dumb.” “Why can’t I be like <insert name here>?” had filled my mind. So to me, God was saying, “You need to clean up your thoughts—thoughts matter, and yours aren’t helping anyone. In fact, they’re hurting.” 

As I write this, we’re in the midst of our worship series Fully Alive, digging into the seven deadly sins: how they show up in our lives and what it would look like to move towards more positive, life-giving virtues. And it’s interesting how with each of these sins, our thoughts play a major role. 

What we think about matters. Whether it’s about ourselves, others, the natural world, or God, negative thoughts breed disconnection and harm, and positive thoughts grow connection and health. 

So in this “year of healing,” what would it look like for each of us to start with healing our thoughts?

For me, I know those nasty, judgmental thoughts (particularly the ones about myself) creep up when I’m tired from trying to do too much. So “healing” first begins with getting more sleep. Then, I give myself a huge dose of grace—it’s OK if a meeting doesn’t go perfectly or I am short with my kids. What matters is what I do next—do I take a deep breath and apologize, or do I double-down and continue the harm? Do I allow God’s unconditional love to grow, or do I further the disconnect between myself and others/God?

What does “healing your thoughts” look like to you? What thoughts are only causing you and others harm? What thoughts do you need to cultivate? 

May this blessing remind you of the goodness that dwells within you, just waiting to be released:

You are a blessing—known, chosen, and called for a purpose. May you boldly live into this truth, recognizing and cherishing your inherent worth so that you may honor God’s image in others. Trust in your belovedness as you enter the redemptive work God has invited you into this year.

*Star words are something that churches give out on Epiphany Sunday as a way to connect with and look for God in the coming year. If you would like a star word, we have many left in the church office, or you can go to BUMCLinks.com to access the star word generator!