Grace and peace to you from God, our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ. With the start of a new year, I am prone to begin to wonder what the future may hold. Many of us view the start of a new year as an opportunity to grasp on to new hopes and new energy. There seems to be a sense of refreshing or starting over that creates these ides of opportunity. As we enter 2009, I believe that there is probably a mix of emotions ranging from concern to great anticipation. We are all concerned about the economy and its impact on many lives. We also have great anticipation as we find a new person in charge of our nation. So I have pondered how we, as Christians, should be responding to these mixed emotions.
I am drawn to a passage in Scripture found in the Gospel of Matthew:
Matthew 6:25-34
[25] "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? [26] Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? [27] And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? [28] And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, [29] yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. [30] But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you--you of little faith? [31] Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' [32] For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. [33] But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
[34] "So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today.
For me this passage places some important things into perspective. First of all, it reminds me that God is in charge! Sometimes I strive to take charge of different aspects of life and so I worry about those aspects. I worry whether things are going to turn out as I have planned. I worry about if I have remembered everything. I worry about making mistakes. But if I realize that God is in charge and has everything planned out, that helps me not to have anxiety over events.
The other benefit that I find from this passage is that knowing how much the Lord loves me and desires only the best for me and those who I care about, I can find great joy and hope in each day. So I am renewed in energy and can anticipate a day filled with blessings. If I face each day of 2009 with this perspective, it makes 2009 not a time of concern but instead a time of great happiness.
So as we start a new year together, I encourage you to hold on to the joy and hope we find in Jesus Christ. Let the worries of the day melt under the realization that God is in charge and you can trust God to work out all things for good. Share this perspective of life and faith with those you encounter and anticipate a wonderful year in the Lord.
God’s blessings,
Jim
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