As the New Year begins to flicker, catch hold, and blaze up, what can we do to make the next 366 days as blessed and gracious as possible? Here are a few thoughts to warm your heart and ignite your dreams:
#1 Positioning. Yesterday, my Sunday School teacher, Dennis Etheredge, recounted the terrifying day when an armless hand appeared and began writing on the wall of a palace. It was a message to Belshazzar, the king of Babylon. Interpreted, it revealed that his kingdom had ended. God had weighed Belshazzar in the balances and found him wanting. (Daniel 5) That very night, the king was slain and his kingdom taken over by Darius, the Mede.
Dennis only mentioned this story to remind us that we are very much like Belshazzar. If God weighs us in the balance, He will find us wanting. “But fortunately,” Dennis said, “we are not in the hand of justice; we are in the hand of Jesus.”
#2 The Safe Spot. Now, lest you think being in the hand of Jesus, is a precarious position, consider this verse from the song, “His Mercy Is More”:
“What love could remember no wrongs we have done?
Omniscient, all knowing, He counts not their sum.
Thrown into a sea without bottom or shore -
Our sins they are many, His mercy is more.” *
Keith & Kristyn GettyIf Jesus has taken our sins and tossed them into a “sea without bottom or shore,” they can never crawl out of that saline soup and attach themselves to us again. We are liberated from our sins, our failures, and our weaknesses because we have been made the righteousness of God in Christ. (II Corinthians 5:21) In all the universe, there is no safer place to be than in the “hand of Jesus,” Who makes us righteous!
(If you don’t know how to get rid of your sins in an ocean without bottom or shore, check out my blog, “Highway to Heaven.”)
#3 The Sweet Spot. Here’s a Scripture passage I love for a new year:
“Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.
Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18-19, KJVWe’ve heard a lot of talk in recent years about wanting normal back and endless discussions about whether normal is even coming back or not. It’s starting to look like we’ll have to adjust to a New Normal.
Okay, it’s not the first time someone has had to face a New Normal. But the good news today and every day is that God is sovereign – God is in control of time and space and “normal.” In the new year, God’s normal is our sweet spot!
#4 A Dream. Back to my Sunday School class – we were studying Romans 15. In that chapter, Paul tells the church at Rome he plans to visit them on his way to Spain. Dennis, my teacher, shared with us that some scholars believe Paul actually made it to Spain before he died. Other scholars believe he died in Rome. Whether he made it to Spain or not, Dennis pointed out, Paul had a plan. He had a dream. He was preparing to take the good news of Jesus Christ to every nation he could reach.
As it happens, my Sunday School class includes many retirees. We’re getting up into those golden years where the body parts either ache or don’t work or both. Yet Dennis thinks we should be like Paul – we should have a plan. And our plan should be the same as Paul’s – to take the good news of Jesus Christ to our world.
We may not make it to “Spain,” but if we don’t aim at SOMETHING, we’ll hit nothing. I can still remember hearing Rev. Robert Schuller preaching, “Inch by inch, anything’s a cinch.” We don’t have to make huge strides. Baby steps are better than no steps. And whether we reach the goal or not, at least we headed for it.
January 1, Any Year, is a wonderful day to make a plan. January 2 is the perfect day to move your plan forward – at least an inch. Then January 3, another inch. And January 4 . . .
You’ll be amazed how quickly your goal will come into view if you move forward a little bit each day!
#5 A Plan. So, where does a plan come from? In my opinion, it comes from the Lord, and we get it from Him by being in relationship with Him. (See my blog, “God’s Will – the Ultimate Mystery.”)
With that in mind, here’s a verse and chorus from “In the Garden,” an old hymn I’ve loved as long as I can remember:
“I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear, falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.
And He walks with me
And He talks with me
And He tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known.”
C. Austin MilesIf you spend time alone “in the garden” with the Lord Jesus Christ, He will give you a dream. He will even help you design a plan to bring the dream to fruition. He can make your New Year exciting and fulfilling. He can take you by the hand and lead you to your sweet spot in His New Normal.
* My apologies to the composers – I added the punctuation, except the commas.
Photo credit: Nora_29 on pixabay
Here are links to my blog indexes, so please click one and keep reading!
My Books, Workbooks, and Fun Books
Knowing the Unknowable One
Opening the Treasure Chest
Walking Heart-to-Heart with God
Walking Heart-to-Heart with Each Other
Fighting the Good Fight of Faith
Christian Mysteries: Why I Love Them!
List of Some Nonfiction Books You Don’t Want to Miss
Index of Assorted Topics