Beginning Anew

New Year’s Day provides the opportunity to begin anew.  Some people make New Year’s resolutions.  These are good, but many people find that those resolutions soon fall by the wayside.  With unfulfilled resolutions there is usually a sense of defeat and maybe even a little sadness. In this New Year let’s make our lives count in an even more significant way.  So you may ask, “how can I make my life count in a significant way?”  Consider the following suggestions:

1)    Make sure your life points to God.  This is the challenge the Apostle Paul made when he said, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (I Corinthians 10:31). Sharing good words and actions that are pleasing to God will put us on track for being a difference maker.

2)    Aim for godliness.  When keeping God central in our mind, we will grow spiritually and be an encouragement to others. The Apostle Paul tells us, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6). Speech most effectively expresses what is inside a person and when that speech mirrors God’s character, positive change can be effective.

3)    Live to draw people to God.  When we live as a reflection of God’s light and show concern by loving people, they will be able to see the glory of Christ in us and be drawn to Him.  The Bible tells us, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).  The ultimate goal is not to accomplish good deeds, but to help people take one step closer to the Lord.

Use this New Year as an opportunity to begin anew.  Make it your goal to focus on thinking, speaking, and acting in accordance with God’s name, and constantly letting the indwelling Christ be reflected to those around you.  The Bible reminds us, “Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (II Corinthians 5:17, NLT).

Beginning Anew

Each year, New Year’s Day brings with it the opportunity to begin anew.  Some people make resolutions but find that those resolutions soon fall by the wayside.  When that happens there is a sense of defeat and maybe even a little sadness. However, the New Year is a new opportunity for us to make our lives count.  So even though we are already into the new year it would be appropriate to ask the question, “how can I make my life count during this new year?"  Here are three suggestions:

1)    Make sure that everything you do points to God.  This is the challenge in the Bible that the Apostle Paul suggests when he says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (I Corinthians 10:31).  Our emphasis should be on God and the things we do should be pleasing to Him.

2)    Focus on godly thoughts, words and actions.  This should be a driving force in our lives every day.  God should be central in our minds but also in our words and the actions we take.  The Apostle Paul also said, “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6). Speech most effectively expresses what is inside the believer. Our speech should mirror God’s character and conduct through love, patience and sacrifice.

3)    Live so people will be drawn to God.  When we live as a reflection of God’s light and concern ourselves with loving people, they will be able to see the glory of Christ in us and be drawn to God.  The Bible tells us, “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).  The ultimate goal is not just good deeds, but to help people be attracted to our Lord.

Even though we are into the month of January it is not too late to use this New Year as an opportunity to begin anew.  Focus on thinking, speaking and acting in accordance with God’s name, and constantly let the indwelling Christ be reflected to those around you.