I woke up today feeling uneasy. Then after slowly rebooting my brain with a big cup of caffeine, it dawned on me that its probably no coincidence that today happens to be New Years Eve and I'm feeling strange. Whenever we turn the page to a new year my heart begins reflecting on the months behind. I think we as humans can't help but do a little soul-searching this time of year. Having just come off the high of the Christmas season, whether or not you hold to the true meaning of it, it leaves your nerves a little frazzled. At least it did for me. No matter how hard I try to avoid the consumerism chaos of Christmas, it always gets the best of me. I despise the crowds, the wasteful spending and the "lets be nice to each other just because it's Christmas and when its over we can all go back to being idiots" mentality. I know... it seems a little harsh of me to say that. I think if we're all being honest with ourselves when the "goodwill towards men" attitude fades in light of routine that comes rushing back in with January, we can't help but feel little jaded. That is unless Christ is given reign over our hearts. Then I read something fantastically attitude altering this morning in Isaiah 52:12:
"For you shall not go out in haste, and you shall not go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard." (NRSV)In context, this was a word given to God's chosen people regarding their exodus from Babylon. I think the original hearers of this message were experiencing MUCH more difficulty than we could ever relate to here on our turf. However, the timeless truths exemplified are painting a picture of a God rescuing His people from bondage gives my heart a joy unspeakable.
"... for the Lord will go before you..." *sigh of relief* Praise God! Given the chance to reflect on the coming new year we must remember something: exactly one year ago God was going before us in 2012. And now we can place our hope and trust in the fact that He will once again be faithful to do the same for 2013. Whatever disappointing failures or upsets this past year held for us... believe in Romans 8:28 (which is a verse a lot of us are familiar with, but need to just keep repeating over and over!)
"And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called to His purpose for them." (NLT)(Side note: I want to clarify that this passage is explicitly intended for those who have made Christ Lord. While I do believe in the usage of scripture for encouragement, this passage is illuminating the hope that believers have in trusting Christ to be glorified in each and every opportunity in their lives; whether it be through a desirable or undesirable circumstance.)
Reflecting on the past. Whether the past has been good to you or you wish it had turned out differently, God's purposes for redeeming the broken world unto Himself are still at work. Will we choose to let our difficulties be used for spiritual growth? Or will we fight God at every turn... resisting His prompting... struggling to make our lives look like we want them to look. Please don't misunderstand me here. I need to hear these tough questions just as much as the next person. I'm asking myself these things too.
I couldn't say it any better than Oswald Chambers (who happens to be one of my all time favorite authors) so I'll just let his words sum it up:
"Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him."
