17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV
Perhaps on this first day of 2016 I should feel optimistic. A new year! New beginnings! Resolved resolutions. Promising promises. But we have been having New Year's Days for centuries and there is still evil, hatred, suffering, and loss. I wonder the percentage of New Year's resolutions focus on personal betterment- less t.v./more reading, fewer sweets/more vegetables, as opposed to resolutions of treating a coworker better, giving a greater % of income to a charitable organization, helping the less fortunate even when it means a personal sacrifice.
At the end of the day, Paul reminds us that the only truly newness is when we give our lives to Christ. Then, and only then, can transformational, foundational change take place. For some it might be over night, for most of us it will be a long process with peaks and valleys, progress and regress. However, with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we can grow, we can change. Our hope for change lies in Him.
Any joy, any anticipation, any excitement we feel about the new year must be grounded in Him and His love. Because as Solomon wrote many years ago, without Jesus as our Lord, Savior, and Guide, "all is vanity and a striving after wind." (Ecclesiastes 1:14 ESV)
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