Tuesday, January 1, 2013 -- Happy New Year

Audio for HAPPY NEW YEAR

Happy New Year!  It's a time when lots of people desire a new start and look for opportunities in the year ahead.   I love the line of a song we sing which declares God "opened up my future, closed my past."  That's what New Year's Day seems to create within us – a desire for a new beginning. 

One of the ways many people seek to make the new year better than the past one is to make New Year's resolutions -- commitments to personal goals, projects, or the reforming of a habit.  I did a little research on Google and found the following list of the top ten New Year's resolutions.  You might find some thoughts there on how you might improve your life.

10 Top Resolutions

1. spend more time with family and friends

2. fit in fitness

3. tame the bulge

4. quit smoking

5. enjoy life more

6. quit drinking

7. get out of debt

8. learn something new

9. help others

10. get organized

The only problem with looking to New Year's resolutions to improve the quality of our life is that statistics tell us that, after just 9 days there is a 75% failure rate in keeping the resolutions.

If we think that's bad, what do we do with the statistic that tells us that 100% of us fail to live according to God's righteous laws?   The result of that failure isn't just a few more pounds or a little more debt – it means death and eternal separation from God. 

It's no wonder we love to celebrate Christmas -- the birth of Jesus Christ.  It is such a wonderful event because the Bible tells us…..But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. (Galatians 4:3-4 NIV)

Before the beginning of TIME, God planned for you and me to live in a loving, fruitful, creative and enjoyable relationship with him.  He would guide us each day and, as we walked and talked with Him and allowed His instructions to guide our activities, we would know peace and blessing in an undivided relationship with Him.

The problem,-- from the very first human being, and all the way through time, not one of us has believed that God is always good and able to care for us.  We've all turned to our own way and ended up doing things that harmed us and harmed others.  Not 75% of us in 9 days but 100% of us through time.

Today is a great day to begin to trust the one who created us, who alone can "open up our future and close our past."  Today can be a fresh beginning of loving surrender to our Heavenly Father on whom we can cast all our care because He cares for us.  We know He loves and cares for us because He gave His only begotten son Jesus to die for our sins on the cross.  Today is a great day to receive a gift -- not the "Eight maids a milking" that the song tells us were given today, but the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Let's begin today to have a truly Happy New Year.