A New Canvas Awaits
The dawn of a new year is just days away. For some of you reading this, maybe 2023 has not been kind to you, and you almost wish this year never happened. For others of you, this year has been good, and you want it to never end. And for still others, you wonder where the year went. As the saying goes, “Time flies when you are having fun.” If that is true, then I must have had the time of my life these past twelve months, because boy oh boy, did this year fly by. The older I get, the more I realize that time does truly fly by, whether “fun” is involved or not.
Regardless of where you fall on that spectrum, with the start of a new year, it is a chance to start afresh. January 1 is a new beginning. It is an opportunity to splash new colors of paint on the canvas that is your life.
Yesterday, or even today, does not define tomorrow. There are things that you can begin doing, or stop doing, in 2024 that will set you on a new path. Not only is it you that wants you to be the best version of you possible, God also deeply desires that very same thing of you and for you. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, you can begin to be(come) the person God wants you to be. This is true no matter what your present or past is cluttered with. God desires to bring newness to you and to me, not just as the calendar turns from one year to the next, but also each and every day.
God is always fresh, and if we seek after him, we too will find freshness – “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23).
In addition to freshness, God also wants to bring and keep meaning and purpose into your life. He wants to do a new thing in you and through you. We find these words in Isaiah – “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (43:18-19). In context, this passage is part of the prophet reminding Israel that if they stayed stuck in the discouragement of Babylonian bondage, they would not be able to “see” the new thing in front of them, the promised release from exile. I believe Isaiah pointed both to the day that Israel would no longer be in captivity and to the coming of Jesus, who releases you and me from our bondage to sin and sinful desires.
So, as we put a wrap on 2023 and get ready for the curtain to open on 2024, are you desiring a new beginning? Will you invite Jesus into your heart, maybe for the first time, or possibly re-commit to him? A fresh new canvas awaits. A canvas that has hope and newness! What colors will you and Jesus splash upon it?
Note from Dave: This will be my last writing for the year. I wish you and your family a safe and prosperous new year, one filled with many colors. It is my hope and prayer that these simple blogs posts have and will keep inspiring you to go deeper with Jesus. Thank you for that privilege. Look for my writings to start again in early 2024. Peace and love.
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