It’s All New For All Of Us

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Well here we are again. It’s the end of another year. We see countless end of the year reviews. We see the year in pictures and hear interviews of the most interesting people of this past year. There is an anticipation of what is to come. An excitement of the new things that the next year will bring. At least for most people it’s this way.

There may be some who are reading this that are in anguish, hurt, or pain because of events this past year. The prospect of another year just means that they must work though more of that hurt and pain. Some of my friends are walking though circumstances right now that resemble this. For those individuals a new year is not exciting. There is apprehension and a longing simply to survive. They most likely won’t be celebrating on December 31.

It is to both of these groups that this post is directed. No matter our circumstances we all stand on the brink of one year ending and another one beginning. Whether the past year was filled with pain and heartache or full of excitement and adventure it is now passing. The next year is upon us. It is and will be what we make it to be.

Paul, when writing to the Corinthian church, said this, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17 — NIV)” Now I realize that this verse is talking about living life in Christ. Isn’t life lived inside of time though? Since we all know it is we can apply this verse (the last half of it) to this part of time in our life.

The old year is gone. It’s over. It’s spent. It no longer exists except in our memories. We can’t change anything about it. Sure it held some pain and hurt. If we look closely there were some good times (maybe even great times) too. But all of them are in the past. They’re gone. We have no way of living them over. I know I’m starting to sound like a scratched CD (or corrupted .mp3 or broken record…depending on your generation). I believe, however, that many times we hinder the growth that God wants to bring about in us because we fail to realize that the old is gone. We can remember the lessons the difficulties taught us and cherish the memories…but none of them can be changed. The milk is spilled.

Although the above is true (we can’t change the past) there is something that can be done about the future. We stand on the brink of an entirely new year. It’s fresh. It’s new. It’s the same for every person on the planet. The Pope will wake up in 2014 with the same number of days in it you do. “…the new is here!”

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Now…I’m not so sheltered to think that we could have hardships that follow us into the new year. We will all have trouble (John 16:33). I’m simply saying that we have a choice how this new year will be lived. We can look back and anchor ourselves to the past. Alternatively we can walk into the new year free to live life as it comes…enjoying the good and conquering the bad.

This coming year is new for all of us. None of us has seen it before. No one knows what it will bring. We all have the same opportunity ahead of us. 2014 is coming whether we want it to or not. It will march into each life the same way and it brings everyone the same thing…a fresh, clean start. How you greet it is up to you.