My mother had many sayings associated with New Year’s Day. She is not superstitious but she quoted them often.
One of her sayings went like this: whatever you do New Year’s Day you will do all year long. That usually meant she would not sweep or vacuum or anything else she didn’t want to do everyday.
With that thought in mind, what should we do today?
First, spend meaningful time with God today. What a blessing to begin the new year spending time with God everyday. More than anything in life we need to be connected with God. Why not spend time today asking God to reveal Himself to you?
Second, treat the people around you like you do a stranger. Martha and I had a wonderful older friend who told us a great story. One day after a phone conversation one of her sons asked this question: “Mama, why don’t you talk to us like you do the people on the phone?”
Wouldn’t this be a great year if we treated the people closest to us with kindness, gentleness, consideration, and love? We should treat everyone as we want to be treated, but we should especially do that to the people closest to us.
Third, seek to serve God in everything you do. Paul emphasized the importance of living our lives in ways that would please Christ. He encouraged us: “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).
Would your year be different if you did everything for Christ? How would it affect your work and your relationships? How would it affect your church?
Live today as the beginning of the rest of your life. Live it for God.
May God grant you a blessed new year.
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6 Responses
Happy New Year!
Yes, that would be nice, especially if you were not dependent on someone else to accomplish a task who has the position: “You needn’t ask, if I wanted you to know I would have told you. “ or “It is not that I don’t love you, I just don’t want you affecting my life.”
Fortunately, the bad behavior of others emphasizes even more you Mother’s point. Ones life my be inconvenienced by their bad behavior; the Blessings of God may be destroyed by their bad behavior; The Victory in Christ for oneself is not dependent on others, although the actions of others may damage the Bride, the Temple, the Kingdom, it does not have to destroy you. Even when others who claim to be in Christ passively stand by and watch another’s physical destruction, the gates of Heaven still open for the one who is Faithful. All in all, it is such a small delay: Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done, on earth as It is in Heaven.
Blessings
Brother Bailey. You are truly an inspiration and help motivate me to be the man God wants all of us to strive to be. Thank you and may God bless you continually.
Ken
I began by spending time in God’s word, finishing an article I’d been commissioned to write, eating a healthy breakfast and lunch, catching up on some housework, getting a half-hour bike ride in, and using an everyday illustration to relay a spiritual lesson to one of my granddaughters. Those are some of the things that I hope will characterize my new year!
So what did you do today? With the inspiration of your message: the outside Christmas lights came down & the Happy Birthday Jesus sign was brought in (before the rain). I pulled some small trees up and I have been fighting Wisteria vines which are attacking the fence, house , etc., so I did my best to pull more of them up too. Washed and dried the remaining bedding from this weekend before having lunch with my Mother-in-Law and my wife.
The we went to the southshore to take care of business, checking messages and people before going to see a movie together, “Parental Guidance.” We haven’t been out much, just the two of us, for quite some time. Sadly, but perhaps in a healthy healing way, we both talked about missing Mom and the challenges ahead. Tomorrow will tell if the amiable sibling tone is real or just an exercise to get through Saturday before war continues. “Spirit of the Living God, Fall Fresh on Us!” I expect to finish the day playing board games with my wife and Mother-in-Law as we did last night, bringing in the New Year. 🙂
Blessings.
Thank you for your dedication to feeding the sheep pastor. As for the new year, I plan to listen more, speak when led by His Spirit (that one is sometimes tricky) and then to pray for courage to act when when He gives clear direction. This year I will write the story of the miracles He has manifest in my life. It is time to share what God has been doing with this common man. Blessings in the new year, Tom