A Brand New Year

2011 has been a very interesting year... filled with great blessings, and trials. I've been blessed beyond anything I deserve, and I wouldn't trade the hard times for anything -- I've learned too much from them (granted, probably not as much as I could have).  I've also seen numerous ways in which I need to grow and trust in God.

I have a great hope that the new year will be a good one, but I know from personal experience that many things will happen that will be difficult and unexpected.  There will also be many joyous moments, and days filled with laughter and peace. And I know that through it all, God will provide me with the strength and courage to take on whatever life throws my way; my prayer is that I will remember my strength lies in Christ, and not in myself.  So often in the heat of the moment we forget that this life on earth is only a temporary one.. I pray that this year I'll keep an eternal perspective with everything, no matter how big or small.

  

2012 holds a lot of promise.  A fresh start.  A brand new year.  The old things have passed; the new has come.  Sound familiar?  It should... 2 Corinthians 5:17 says this, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."  It's a blessing to know that in Christ we are made a new creation, the past is past and a future in Christ awaits!  That's a promise.

I was just reminded about another passage that fits in very well with the new year of fresh beginnings...  Philippians 3:12-15, "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.  Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you."   The friend that reminded me of this also had this to say, "Forgetting past failures AND achievements, focus on the 'upward call of God in Christ Jesus' which is to live more and more for Him in 2012"  And that says it very well.

So, I leave the year of 2011 with this prayer that Billy Graham wrote many years ago...

 "Our Father and our God, as we stand at the beginning of this new year we confess our need of Your presence and Your guidance as we face the future.

 We each have our hopes and expectations for the year that is ahead of us—but You alone know what it holds for us, and only You can give us the strength and the wisdom we will need to meet its challenges. So help us to humbly put our hands into Your hand, and to trust You and to seek Your will for our lives during this coming year.

 In the midst of life’s uncertainties in the days ahead, assure us of the certainty of Your unchanging love.

In the midst of life’s inevitable disappointments and heartaches, help us to turn to You for the stability and comfort we will need.

 In the midst of life’s temptations and the pull of our stubborn self-will, help us not to lose our way but to have the courage to do what is right in Your sight, regardless of the cost.

 And in the midst of our daily preoccupations and pursuits, open our eyes to the sorrows and injustices of our hurting world, and help us to respond with compassion and sacrifice to those who are friendless and in need. May our constant prayer be that of the ancient Psalmist: “Teach me, O Lord, to follow your decrees; then I will keep them to the end” (Psalm 119:33). 

 We pray for our nation and its leaders during these difficult times, and for all those who are seeking to bring peace and justice to our dangerous and troubled world. We pray especially for Your protection on all those who serve in our armed forces, and we thank You for their commitment to defend our freedoms, even at the cost of their own lives. Be with their families also, and assure them of Your love and concern for them.
 Bring our divided nation together, and give us a greater vision of what You would have us to be. Your Word reminds us that “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord” (Psalm 33:12). 

 As we look back over this past year we thank You for Your goodness to us—far beyond what we have deserved. May we never presume on Your past goodness or forget all Your mercies to us, but may they instead lead us to repentance, and to a new commitment to make You the foundation and center of our lives this year. 

 And so, our Father, we thank You for the promise and hope of this new year, and we look forward to it with expectancy and faith. This I ask in the name of our Lord and Savior, who by His death and resurrection has given us hope both for this world and the world to come. 

 Amen"