Isaiah 48:16
NLT
Come closer, and listen to this. From the beginning I have told you plainly what
would happen.” And now the Sovereign LORD and his Spirit have sent me with this
message.
Just
one day from now we will be in a new year.
It will be 2013, and the key word there is NEW. It is a new beginning or a fresh start with
new opportunities and challenges. How we
see our past and how we look to the future will either make this new year great
or a huge burden.
Praise
God that He has told us what we need.
We’ve heard the truth and can accept the fact that God changes us based
not on our merit or what we have. He has
changed us based on the past work and completed action of Jesus. He has forgiven us. He has made us new.
Colossians 3:11
NLT
In this new
life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or
uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that
matters, and he lives in all of us.
No
title is good enough. You cannot have
enough money or prestige or anything that will get you through. If Christ is in you, you are there. If you don’t know God, you are sunk. That is why we have to share what the Bible
says. He makes us new when we receive
Him.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has
become a new person. The old
life is gone; a new life has
begun!
My
life is changed. My past is the
past. What I did then and how my life
was marked was then and not now. What
defines me is who I belong to. That
means we have to not only hear what God says but live it out every day. It may not feel right, but it is right. I may try to beat myself up or let someone
else beat me up, but God says I am a new creation. My old life is gone.
So,
what can we do to make sure that the new year and our new lives are a
reality? It is simple. Read on…
1 Peter 2:2
NLT
Like newborn
babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full
experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment,
Babies
when they are hungry are loud and need someone to feed them. God wants to feed us His goodness and His
grace. Let Him feed you. Every day feed on the things that God says
and teaches you. Let this year become
full of God’s word in you!
Another
way to make sure that this is a great year is to make sure that you believe
that the future is bright and the best is yet to come. We are promised heaven. But that isn’t the end of our salvation. Well, actually it is the ending home. What is now is the abundant life and strength
and peace that God alone can give.
2 Peter 3:13
NLT
But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world
filled with God’s righteousness.
Are
you living each and every day in the greatness of God? Live it.
Help 2013 be the greatest year of your life. It doesn’t make whether 2012 was great or a
year of groaning for you. Let God do
incredible things in and through you.
Make
2013 the best ever. Like this verse says…
Hebrews 12:12
NLT
So take a new
grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.
I am excited about what is ahead. It’s all new.
God has made us new and is offering new life and new opportunities every
day. Let’s live this new life.
Happy New Year!!!
Comments