Everything New

He makes everything new. This year, is a major shift year for me. How about you?

Everything New

I can’t think of a more frightening thought. Change is hard, but for those of us who have had significant trauma, it’s really hard. I like my sameness, my routine, and my environment to remain the same. The goodness of God ensures that every new thing is at a good time, whether we actually think so or not. I had a fantastic conversation with a young woman who had been scheduled for an abortion, but she got born again instead. The pregnancy and delivery were the darkest and most difficult times of her young life, but she knows that God brought her through.

Her life and that of her child are evidence that He brings us through the fire and the flood. She not only survived, but thrived and came through with a tremendous resolve to help those who face similar circumstances. She and those who have been through trauma, are ready to show how resilient people can be. There is glory in that, glory to God, for His goodness. Jesus came to bring us into relationship with our benevolent Father. It wasn’t by a declaration, but by action amidst her circumstance that she persevered. She is a valiant example of womanhood.

New Years Resolutions

New years resolutions don’t work for most people. By February first, they usually cause more distress than anything else. Stating that you are going to do a few new things: eat healthy, go to the gym, minimize clutter all sound good. Even if the statements are very specific: cut out all carbs at one meal each day, or go to the gym for 40minutes Monday, Wednesday, and Friday or clean one closet per week in January, they often leave us flat. For those of us who have suffered abuses, the future is hard to see, but we can learn to reach for it. To make everything new all at once would be very unsettling.

Small, incremental changes are often the most effective and lasting way to develop new habits. Very small shifts lead to big change over time. Just think of the trajectory of a rocket. A tiny shift can mean missing the moon!

He is my Shield

I love the Lord, God with all of my heart. I could be wrong about what I know and if I am, I’ve lost nothing. If I am correct and I do understand the call of His grace on my life, I want to follow Him with all of my strength.

That can mean stepping away from other activities, people, or projects. It means resigning from positions that pull our attention from His good, acceptable and perfect will for our lives. It can mean leaving groups or social media or associations that do not serve the purpose of our lives during certain seasons. When we step out in faith, if we misstep, He will correct us. This world is His and all that is in it. He has good purposes for making everything new.

Decisions Require Thought

To decide, literally comes from the roots, to “cut” “off”. People are not always the best at deciding what is good or perfect. In fact, our free will can get us into trouble in many ways. Our desires are not always His desires. Free will is the greatest and most important endowment from our creator. When we ask Him for wisdom from above, that which is first pure and peaceable, Scripture tells us that He will give liberally.

I spent a good deal time deliberating and talking about what this new year would hold for me and what I would make of it. I realize that I have become very out-of-touch with the way I formerly lived: the poverty of mind, lack of resources, lack of judgement, lack of thought for the future. Thankfully, I do not live that way any more. The wealth I enjoy is that of good friends and family.

Seeking to Be of Value

As I sat at my mother-in-law’s table playing cards, she brought out a box of chocolates that had been given as a gift. We cut into them, readily discarding those we didn’t like. I couldn’t help, but think of the many people who would judge us as wasteful and spoiled. Maybe they would even believe that we should have made an effort to give them to some less fortunate before throwing them away.

The chocolates were a metaphor for me. If therefore, I believe that there is no value in their presence, then, why would I assign any? In that same way, I want to be able to add value to whatever I am involved in. That may mean that value is for a season. In a new season, change is inevitable, at least here, in New England. The young oak trees shed their brown, dried out, cracked and noisy leaves only when the spring thaw brings the new growth, displacing the old. In the same way, many of us hold onto the things that must fall away. Do you?

Resignation to New Things

My resignation from Save The 1 means that I will focus on new things. In reality, my family will be one of the main receivers of renewed love. My home and my businesses are in need of my my attention, as well. Projects, visits, and adventures await. I am eager to leave my years of “arm chair activism” and resume a life full of people and purpose.

Shuttering my Facebook is my incremental shift and I’m very much looking forward to this new year and all the new unknowns. How about you?

What have you resigned to pursue?