Happy New Day!
The New Year is celebrated as a time for a fresh start. It is a chance to set goals and plans for the future, a time for change.
Like a refiners fire, January 1st, is set aside to burn away the chaff in our lives and become a new person. Typical resolutions are to lose weight, save money, spend more time doing the things you should and less time focused on the things that don't really matter and travel all over Europe. OK, I admit, the last one might just be one of mine.
A few weeks or months into the new year people often start to stumble. On our own, we are failures. We cannot drop 10 pounds, change our daily routine, or spend more time with loved ones without the changing power of God. In Mark 14:38, Jesus tells the disciples "The spirit is willing, but the body is weak". So, should we just bag the idea of resolutions? No. Jesus didn't intend to discourage the disciples, he was simply reminding them that without seeking God, we are not much more than well intended beings. If we ever intend to really change, we must invite God along for the journey.
When the journey is tough or you flat out turn back at some point, don't worry all is not lost. Lamentations 3:21-23 reminds us that God's mercy is new every day. In His eyes, every day is New Years, every day is a chance to walk back to His throne, lay at His feet, and invite him to help us with our struggles.
"This I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness."
So, lets say you ate a quart of ice cream, skipped your devotional time and gossiped . . . don't give up, tomorrow is a new day.
Like a refiners fire, January 1st, is set aside to burn away the chaff in our lives and become a new person. Typical resolutions are to lose weight, save money, spend more time doing the things you should and less time focused on the things that don't really matter and travel all over Europe. OK, I admit, the last one might just be one of mine.
A few weeks or months into the new year people often start to stumble. On our own, we are failures. We cannot drop 10 pounds, change our daily routine, or spend more time with loved ones without the changing power of God. In Mark 14:38, Jesus tells the disciples "The spirit is willing, but the body is weak". So, should we just bag the idea of resolutions? No. Jesus didn't intend to discourage the disciples, he was simply reminding them that without seeking God, we are not much more than well intended beings. If we ever intend to really change, we must invite God along for the journey.
When the journey is tough or you flat out turn back at some point, don't worry all is not lost. Lamentations 3:21-23 reminds us that God's mercy is new every day. In His eyes, every day is New Years, every day is a chance to walk back to His throne, lay at His feet, and invite him to help us with our struggles.
"This I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness."
So, lets say you ate a quart of ice cream, skipped your devotional time and gossiped . . . don't give up, tomorrow is a new day.
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