Eleven times a year I flip to a new page on my calendar, never giving it much thought. But a few days ago, I flipped it one more time, and suddenly it was a new year! Instead of "just another day", or "next month", it's a brand new
year. Welcome 2017!
Except for all the falderal on December 31, isn't January 1 pretty much "just another day"? The sun comes up and then it sets; another day is over. But there IS something different about this day, and I think you can feel it, too. Just like the old Adam within us who is daily drowned and a "new man" comes forth, the old year is just a pile of memories--some really good ones, and some we would like to forget--and a "new year" comes forth. It's a new start. It's time for looking forward with a resolve to try new things, or do the same things only better; to open our Bibles a little more often and to share what we find in it with more vigor. It's time to be excited about what new opportunities and blessings our gracious God has in store for us, our congregations and ministries.
Will it be a good year? Definitely YES! We know that it will be because every year, every month, every day, every moment is a gift from Him, and He will be right by our side. And even when He says, "That's long enough now," and calls us home, He will be with us on that day, too. That won't be "just another day"- it will be The Day that will never end.
I pray that you, your families and our District will have a Happy New Year. But come what may, I know that it will be a greatly blessed year, because He will see each day through right along with each of us!
