Happy Not-the-Same-Old Year

We often meet the new year with good intentions – usually the typical plans to exercise more, eat less, write that magnum opus, or launch into a new hobby. Truth is, however, we may come into the new year so beaten down by the old one that our resolutions have lost their steam before the train ever left the platform. 

How do we break the cycle? How do we ensure the new year will not echo that old familiar refrain of defeat and discouragement? Well, as with most things, the battle begins in our hearts and our heads. First, we have to want something different – as in really want it. Sometimes we allow ourselves to stay in our ruts because we find comfort in the familiar. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). Surrender yourself and your situation to the Lord so that all things may be made new. Be willing to make yourself uncomfortable. Be willing to live a little on the edge by breaking a habit or a routine. 

Second, we have to recognize that most of us are able to wage war on only one battlefront at a time. And if we must choose, seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33). In other words, put God – and your relationship with Him – first, and everything else will fall into place. Make your daily quiet time a priority, even if you only have a few minutes to spare. Seek to let His life shine through yours. That can only happen through continual communion with Him.

Third, remove yourself from relationships that drag you down. If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell (Mark 9:47). Apply that concept to the people in your life as well. Those with whom we associate ourselves can make us myopic, unable to see the One Thing that should be at the center of our sights. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). For a more exhaustive discussion of toxic relationships, check out my July 4, 2011, post, When It’s Time to Detox, http://halffullandoverflowing.blogspot.com/2011/07/when-its-time-to-detox.html.

Fourth, don’t wave the white flag of surrender when you face a setback. Reach up to the Lord, pull yourself up, dust yourself off, and start over. Persevere. The testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything (James 1:3-4). To paraphrase a popular commercial, you can do it. He can help.

Are you beginning to see a common thread here? If you know Christ as your Savior and Lord – you’re trusting Him and Him alone for your salvation – then you have the power within you by virtue of the Holy Spirit to change. You can change. Your life can change. The Holy Spirit will guide you, and the Word of God will instruct you.

As you journey through this new year, please let me know how I can pray for you, or tell me how you see God working in your life. I am trusting God for great things in your lives and mine.

Happy not-the-same-old year, my friends.

Joy in the Mourning

The light of Christmas shines dimly for many around the world. It is a time of want. It is a time of persecution. It is a time of grief. It is a time of loneliness. Comfort seems so distant. Words seem so empty – except these:

Weeping may last for the night, but a shout of joy comes in the morning. (Psalm 30:5)

With dawn comes new life and new hope for a new day. And on one special day, the Son descended and light entered the dark recesses of the hearts of men. In that, we can rejoice.

Because of our God’s merciful compassion, the Dawn from on high will visit us to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Luke 1:78-79)

Peace has not eluded the African pastor who watches helplessly as his church is pillaged and his flock scattered. The Prince of Peace dwells in his heart. In that, he can rejoice.

I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David. (Luke 2:10-11). 

It is good news of great joy for all people. It is good news for the grieving mother, for she knows that child born in the city of David was also born in the heart of her son. In that, she can rejoice.

When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. (Matthew 2:10)

Our Deliverer has come. Our Deliverer is coming again. In that, we can rejoice.

Behold the Babe born in the manger. Know His peace, and trust His heart. One day that Dawn from on high will restore joy in your mourning. 

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. (Revelation 21:4)

Those who trust in Christ will find everlasting comfort and everlasting peace. In that, we can rejoice. Set your face toward the Son, and let His light shine in your darkness.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

To the grieving, I say, rejoice!

To the afflicted, I say, rejoice!

To the persecuted, I say, rejoice!

To the heartbroken, I say, rejoice!

To the oppressed, I say, rejoice!

To the hopeless, I say, rejoice!

To the castaway, I say, rejoice!

To the motherless, I say, rejoice!

To the weary, I say, rejoice!

To the restless, I say, rejoice!

To the forgotten, I say, rejoice!

To the suffering, I say, rejoice!

He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. (Psalm 126:5-6)

Christ has come. He has come to give you strength for today and hope for eternity. He has come to be your peace.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

Merry Christmas, my friends, and may His joy fill your hearts, even in times of heartache.

You Can't Do Anything Without Him

People can be such a blessing in our lives. And if you’ve been belittled or verbally abused, you’ve probably swallowed one of these bitter pills:

“You can’t do anything without me.”

Or its equally demeaning but less narcissistic first cousin: “You’ll never be able to do anything on your own.”

A lot of us – particularly, although not exclusively, women – have baggage full of that kind of trash. Worse yet, we’ve bought into it. I once traveled alone to the other side of the world, speaking exclusively in a foreign language in one country, just to prove someone wrong on that count. 

I came home more confident and maybe even a little more defiant. Never again would I subscribe to the lie that I couldn’t do anything on my own when I had successfully navigated Europe solo.

But then I came to realize that I was actually wrong. I couldn’t do anything on my own. At least nothing of worth. The same is true of you.

Don’t get me wrong: You can leave a legacy of greatness in the world’s eyes. You can have a lasting impact on the world. You can become the subject of notoriety, of biographies and documentaries. But in the end, it may mean nothing if done on your own.

That’s because our only true worth is found in Jesus Christ, and the only things that we do of eternal significance are those things that we do in and for Him. In John 15:5, Jesus makes a powerful statement to His followers: “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.”

I learned some important lessons on my big adventure. I showed fortitude and courage when facing strange situations in strange cultures. I was even productive, having used the time to write about 150 pages of a novel. But I went into and came away from that experience for the sake of my own glory. So my experience was an expensive venture into navel-gazing. And there’s nothing attractive about a navel.

In 1 Corinthians 3:12-15, Paul augments Jesus’ message in John 15 by telling us what will happen to all those great things we do for own own glory – the fame, the financial success, the scientific advances, the knowledge we acquire. “If any man builds on this foundation” – that is, Jesus Christ – “using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day [of the Lord] will bring it to light; it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames,” Paul writes.

How much of my time do I squander doing things of no lasting merit? How will my meager contribution to this world fare on that fearful day of God’s judgment? Will I be among those who, because I have done so much for my own glory and so little for His, barely escape the flames?

Jesus must be my all in all; He alone must be my one thing. And even when I do the menial things, I must do it for His glory, doing my best as unto Him. The same is even more true when I do the great things. My flesh will lead me astray, to the hay, the wood and the straw. My only hope is to be led of the Holy Spirit: “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit” (Galatians 5:24-25).

When you find yourself listening to trash talk that tells you you’re hopeless and helpless without certain people in your life, take out the garbage. Your success in life is not measured by the bullies who control and demean you. It is measured by the degree of your surrender to Christ. Tell those voices of defeat and discouragement that you serve the living God of the impossible who enables you to do all things: “For nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:38); “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

It’s time to make your life count. To paraphrase a famous commercial, you can do it; He can help.