If you are reading this you have made it through another year,
praise the Lord. I say praise the Lord
for three reasons. First, if you are a
believer this could be the best year of your life and if you are not a believer
this could also be the best year of your life. Second, for the believer this could be the
year that the Lord returns and takes us home to be with Him where we will forever
be with the Lord and for the non-believer they have at least another day, or
more, to repent and get things right with the Lord. The third reason is the Lord is always worthy
of our praise and He also inhabits the praise of His people.
Today there will be many New Year’s resolutions made like,
going on a diet or starting an exercise program and many other things, but many
will not be kept. For believers many may
resolve to do more Bible study, spend more time in prayer, have a closer walk
with the Lord, get more involved in ministry or church attendance or witnessing
to more people which are all good things to do but instead of making New Year resolutions,
I think it would be better to commit and follow through with your commitment. New Year’s resolutions can put people in bondage,
believers or not, because both are sincere at the start but as time goes on their
determination falters and they both feel like miserable failures.
One of the reasons people fail is that their commitments
exceed their ability. Sometimes our emotions
take us far beyond our capabilities and we commit to things that we are not
ready for, then reality sets in and we become devastated, feeling guilty for
not being able to accomplish the goal we set for ourselves. Sometimes believers get involved in so many
things they start neglecting the things that are the most important and when
they come to their senses they feel bad for doing it. I believe everything you do for the Lord is
very important, but being involved in too many things or the wrong things at
the wrong time can be a hindrance instead of a blessing.
I think most believers have heard the story about Mary and
Martha which is found in Luke 10:38-42 that says this, “As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village
where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called
Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was
distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and
asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by
myself? Tell her to help me!” Martha, Martha, the Lord answered, you are
worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has
chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
The problem wasn’t that what Martha was doing was a bad thing,
just at the time it wasn’t the better thing. We can run into the same problem getting our priorities
mixed up doing our own thing instead of what the Lord wants us to do at the
time. Like Martha we can be so busy
serving the Lord that we can neglect Him, in our fervor to serve Him. Are you so busy trying to serve the Lord, that
you are sacrificing your relationship with Him?
My advice is not to make New Year’s resolutions or make decisions
by allowing your emotions to dictate your decisions. Immerse yourself in prayer, seeking the Lord for
what He wants you to change, or do, this coming year, then when you feel sure
of what He wants, commit to doing that and start doing it. With the Lord’s help you will be able to hang
in there and not give up. Something to
think about! God bless you and yours and
may you have a great day!!
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