It's A New Year

Yes, ready or not, 2017 is almost here. We can moan and groan as much as we like, it's knocking on our doors. Unless Jesus comes first. Which is very likely. But that's for another post. For right now, what are you doing about 2017?  Will it be the same old, same old? You know what someone said about that? If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got, or something to that effect.

So, my suggestion to you for 2017 is, begin by not making any New Year's resolution. I put it in bold just to make sure it stands out. Just decide that you're going to do the best you can in the new year. With God's help. That's what I plan to do. You see, there are many well-written books and tapes out there that tell us how to achieve our dreams. How to reach our highest potential, but from my experience, I know that I am nothing without God.

He saved me from dying of whooping cough when I was a baby (yes, that was a long time ago. Some of you have never heard of whooping cough.) Then he gave me a teaching career, found me a good husband - to whom I am still married decades later - gave us four beautiful children and a lucrative business. God fulfilled my dream of returning to school to get a BSc degree and later to become a published writer. All wonderful accomplishments, but the greatest of them all was when He saved my soul after I'd migrated from Trinidad to America. I could not have done any of this without the work of His Holy Spirit.

"I can do all this through him who gives me strength" (Philippians 4: 13).

The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 2: 5, " so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power." 

Friends, we need to put our faith and trust in God in the coming year. He alone has the answers we seek, and He will deliver them if we ask Him. Happy New Year! 

Are You Ready For 2016?

                                                                                                                                                    

Whenever my grandson, Jayden and his little sister Jen play hide and seek, I can usually predict  who the winner will be. Jayden is familiar with all Jen's favorite hiding places, so when she is hiding, he waits a little then calls out, "Ready or not!" Shortly after, shouts of joy - from Jayden -and squeals of surprise - from Jen - ring out. 

So it is with the new year. Ready or not, 2016 is here. The only difference between it and a game of hide and seek is that we knew it will find us, but we didn't realize how quickly. Everywhere I turn, I hear people commenting on how quickly 2015 passed. Many of us worked harder, drove faster and stayed up later in an effort to fulfill our dreams, only to be caught before we'd even accomplished half of those things.

I daresay, 2016 will not be much different. With the specter of terrorism, climate change, global financial crises and a host of other ills threatening, we may be tempted to ramp up our efforts to do more in 2016. This can leave us tired, frustrated and defeated.

Jesus Christ gives us some good advice: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls" (Matthew 11: 28 - 29). 

Jesus offers us the perfect hiding place - one where we will never be caught unawares or unprepared. If you have been running yourself ragged trying to achieve this, that or the other, stop now and go to Jesus. Exchange your burden for His, and you will find rest. 

The beginning of a new year is the best time to make a new start. If you don't know Jesus, why not open your heart to Him today, because one day, ready or not, He's coming and He will find you. Will your shout be one of joy or one of surprise? 

Happy New Year!

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New Year's Resolutions

For decades the topic of New Year's resolutions has been so bandied about around this time of year, that I, for one, have come to dread it. Some people have said that they make New Year's resolutions on New Year's eve, only to break them on New Year's Day! I don't think I've ever been that bad, but I'm usually unaware of when I stop following through with my resolutions. Still, in the back of my mind nag those pesky wishes, desires and dreams that are ushered in with the confetti and firecrackers. And I find myself thinking, what if I could really lose those ten pounds this year? What if I could really stop eating chocolates and ice-cream? What if I could exercise four days out of every week?

What if ... Over the years I have come to realize the futility of those wishes and so I've stopped wishing and begun to ask God to give me the strength and the motivation to do what I need to do. And as I reflected on that this morning, the Holy Spirit laid it on my heart that He wants me to love Him more. "I do love you, Lord," I said. "I've been loving You ever since I was a child. Even when I knew very little about You."

Gently, He directed my thoughts to the kind of love He requires. The kind that Mary, Lazarus's sister showed to Jesus. This woman sat at His feet, drinking in His words, while her sister Martha busied herself being hospitable. Jesus said of Mary, "She has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10: 42). While Jesus appreciated Martha's hospitality, he clearly considered the time Mary spent with Him to be far more valuable than what Martha did. When we love someone we want to spend as much time with them as possible, and I believe this is what God was saying to me this morning. Make time for Me; put aside your busyness and spend time with Me.

In His commandments the Lord said, "... I am a jealous God" (Exodus 20:5). He is jealous of all the "gods" we put before Him. The god of work, money, position, entertainment and all the many "gods" we create. We don't want to make God jealous, do we? Because if we do, He just might remove the "gods" that are taking His place in our lives. So there's my New Year's resolution. Learning to love God and spending more time with Him in 2011.

Lord, I love you, but I confess that my love has been weak and faint. I allow too many things to get in the way of spending time with you. Help me in this New Year to spend more time at Your feet so I can get to know You better and become more like You, in Jesus' name. Amen.