My Grand girl giving it her best
with her smash cake - 1 year old.
"And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord..." Colossians 3:23
Christmas Day is almost in the books for most of us. We had a lively Christmas Eve afternoon and the rest has been extremely quiet. Different to say the least, but somewhat relaxing after church, food prepping, and opening gifts on yesterday.
This morning while all was calm and quiet, my thoughts turned to the next “event” marked for us on the calendar.
New Years.
I don’t know about you but I enjoy fresh beginnings. Chances to start over. Re-do’s. Times when I’m allowed to try over once more. Don’t you just love the verse in the Bible which talks about all the old things becoming new? New Years is kind of one of those opportunities!
True, we cannot change what has already taken place in life, but this is an opportunity for us to attempt to do things different and better in the days ahead.
We usually make resolutions.
How many times have we made the “lose weight/eat better” resolution. You know the one, where we start off with gusto on January 2nd and by Valentine’s Day we’re diving, tastebuds first, into our box of chocolates.
So, this morning I made a promise to myself and a pledge to God for 2023. No diet fad, no “get it together” to-do lists…no, not for me. This year I’m changing it up and I’m hoping you’ll think about doing the same thing after you read this.
In 2023, I’m going to live out each day to the best of my ability. I’m going to allow God room to do what He needs to do, I’m going to treat others with honor and respect as I “do unto others” as I’d like done to me. I’m going to give it my all every day, and on the hard days, I’m not going to quit.
How would our world change if we all looked at life as living it out for or unto God instead of always being “me” minded? What can I do that will bring glory to God? What can I do that would bless someone else and show Christ? What would my work look like if I did it as into the Lord instead of just enough to get by?
What if I gave every day my best effort?
I believe we’d all lay our heads on our pillow at night feeling confident and more accomplished than ever before. I believe we would make an impact in the lives of others on a daily basis and contribute positively to our world; and more than anything, I believe God would be pleased with our effort too. He likes when we give Him our all!
So, can I challenge us to start the new year off right? Different maybe, but it carries a lot less stress and guilt than resolutions.
Just do your best every day!
And if a day goes by and you feel you’ve fallen short, don’t despair; just go to bed and ask God for help, then get up in the morning and give it your best once again.
Simplicity. Honesty. Integrity. Let's work on a new version of ourselves! We can all do this if we set our mind to it. Let’s start a chain reaction and see if it will catch on. What a world this would be, and we’d be daily preparing for the one to come.
God bless you and yours in the new year ~