Whenever we turn that calendar from one year to the next, most everyone seems it necessary to “start again.” Resolutions – New Beginnings – Promises – Diets – Attitude Adjustments – etc. These usually last a few months at best, some only a few weeks.
What makes it so difficult for us to step-it-up,
make a change, learn from our past pain, experiences and mistakes, and turn around? What is deep within our souls holding onto
old habits – anger, selfishness, and unforgiveness?
I know for myself, before I allowed God to reach
deep within my soul and capture my heart, I didn’t see my true self. I fell into the mistake time and time again,
believing that I was “OK” – that I was a caring person and was selfless.
As my faith grew, and my awareness of who I was without
God being a major part of my life, I realized that even my “good deeds, my
kindness, my giving my time for others” usually only felt complete once I was acknowledged,
thanked and recognized. So much for
selflessness!
In this world, love seems to have gone from
mankind’s heart, now and me seems the mantra of today’s youth,
and forgiveness is used more to manipulate and abuse rather than to heal. Even protesters, starting with a plea for
justice, end up stirring the air of hate and unforgiveness. As a result, the gap seems to widen rather
than close in. Sin seems to have
overtaken human nature as cancer does the human body.
The more God’s grace filled my heart, the more I
knew I am nothing without him, without his love, without his purpose for my
life. I continue to hold onto his word,
his promises to me, that with him I can know my purpose in this world. I can see my surroundings through his eyes, mourning
the overwhelming evil, but at the same time allowing him to live in and through
me as I share my life with those around me.
My Christian faith allows me to have a personal
relationship with the God of the universe, the God who created me, the God who
felt it worthy that he should lay down his life for me. And as with any relationship, I must
communicate with him by time spent in prayer, reading his word daily, and
allowing him to guide my path. As a result joy becomes fervent, hearts are
pressed together, and my soul can shine with the influence of God to those
around me. He brings people into my
life that I can encourage and care for as he does me. I have been given a great and mighty privilege
to share my faith with others.
So as I begin another year . . . I pause with
thankfulness and humility. The Lord graced
me with faith. I move forward knowing he
is with me, he will carry me through trials and difficult days, he will
encourage me with his word and his presence, and he will give me a peace that
surpasses all understanding.
I recall the way the two travelers felt as they
unknowingly walked with the risen Lord, “And
they said to one another, were not our hearts greatly moved and burning within
us while he was talking with us on the road and he opened and explained the
scriptures?” (Luke
24:32)
I thank the Lord that not only do I have these
same scriptures to burn within my heart, he walks along with me on my road of
life, and he lives in and through me as I continue on this journey.
Show me your ways, Lord,
teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long. – Psalm 25:4-5
