“another year is coming to an end. I can feel her tug at my calendar; I can sense her insistent movement. I can hear her call to cross over…I risk the road of another new year” 1
Where were you on New Years Eve and what were you thinking about as you greeted 2011? Were you sad to see the end of 2011 or just grateful that it was over, hopeful that 2012 would be a better year for you? Each year brings it’s own set of memories. Many of us have had good, even spectacular, things happen—improved relationships or health, a marriage, the birth of a child, a new job. Some of us may have experienced losses that brought us to our knees, causing us to rethink our whole life. Perhaps it is the death of a loved one, the loss of a relationship, a health crisis, the loss of a job, or our home.
With the passage of each year, and the advent of a new year most, of us take stock of what has happened in the previous year, what we have accomplished, and where we need to make those changes that will improve our lives. What have you learned from the experiences of the previous year? Are there changes that you can make that will bring about an improvement in your life or the life of someone else? None of us is exactly alike. Each of us has faced different challenges and experiences so each of us approaches life from a perspective that is not the same as our neighbor’s. Some of us are looking forward to the opportunities and possibilities that this next year holds for us. Some of us are weighted down by responsibilities and looking for ways to make the load a little lighter.
Each year brings its own challenges but also gives us the promise of new beginnings and starting over fresh. We mull over those bad habits that we have acquired and resolve to do better during the coming year. We make New Year’s resolutions—to lose weight, exercise more, spend more time in prayer or devotion or with our family. Some of us will find ways to actually put our good intentions into practice and our lives will be richer and fuller for the efforts. Others will see their good intentions fall by the wayside within a few weeks or months as they slide back into their old habits. Change is never easy even when we know it is good for us.
Fortunately, no matter what we face and whatever the outcome is, we can know that God will be with us and will meet us just where we are to help and guide us. God invites and encourages us to be more than we thought we could be. God has great plans for us as individuals and as a church. And God will help us to continue to take those steps that will keep us moving forward.
Many blessings, Pastor Barb
1. “The Road of Life”-January from May I Have This Dance by Joyce Rupp