Encouragement for a New Year

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Calvary Baptist Church

I love New Year’s. It’s not because of the New Year’s Eve celebration; it’s not because the busyness of the holidays is over. It’s because it signifies the end of a chapter, one that probably didn’t reach my highest expectations yet holds the hopes, dreams, and the possibilities of a whole new year.

Romans 7: 18 says: “For I know that in me (that is in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not.”

At the start of a new year gyms all across America will see a spike in new membership. Why? Because of New Year’s resolutions. Nearly every top ten list includes the following resolutions: getting in shape, losing weight, to quit smoking, eat less, and so on. Unfortunately, most of these resolutions don’t last but a week or so. So, if you’re really wanting to go to the gym and get in shape or exercise, just wait until late January or February and you will have a much easier time finding a parking space.

No matter how hard we try to plan and maintain a handle in our lives, each year most of us are faced with situations and circumstances that are completely out of our control. Even though a new year almost seems “artificial” in some ways – only minutes from one to the next – I See it as a brand new start, a start that we need every year to help us get past the past. A New Beginning in Jesus Christ.

Isn’t it wonderful to know as we begin this New Year that we have God’s Spirit with us, His Spirit carrying us, leading us, and guiding us? Do you realize that this year in which you can serve God with a fresh new excitement? As you’re walking with Him and being obedient to Him, you will feel the sense of His pleasure in your life.

Pleasure doesn’t come in the pursuit of happiness, but in the pursuit of holiness. Far too many people miss God’s divine plan for their lives as they’re bent on pursuing all the things of the world, hoping to find some sense of joy on their own.

So as you set new goals, new priorities for the coming days, check out where God is in your plans, in your decision making. What’s on your calendar for today, this week, this month, this year that will make any difference for the Kingdom?

One thing will always remain the same and that is God. And because He is unchanging – He will always be the same, and He will never leave or forsake you (Hebrews 13: 5) He is always there with arms wide open waiting for you. With the beginning of this New Year, cling to the fact that He will never change.

If you desire a fresh new start, determine He will be the One you will run to. Run to Him and bury yourself in the security of all He is. Happy New Year everyone.