An Exciting New Year

    An Exciting New Year

Rebecca U.

           Well girls, we have made it through another year! I hope it was a good one for all of you. We are here at the beginning of another year. Our attitude as we approach this new year will make a major difference in what we will accomplish this year. There are two different ways we can look at this year.

With Indifference

          We can approach this year with an attitude of indifference. We can think that it's just another year full of work, another year with the same old things happening, that this year is nothing special. If we are looking at this next year in this way, it will be just another year of work. Another year that we don't accomplish anything really great. Just another boring year in our lives. But it doesn't have to be this way. We can choose to look at this next year another way.

With excitement

          We can approach this year with excitement. We can look forward to a year full of adventures, excitement, and new things. New things can be scary, but they can also be exciting. We can look forward to having another year to accomplish things we've dreamed of doing. We can cross more things off our bucket lists, visit new places, meet new people, and continue to learn and explore new things.

          Sometimes we look at our futures and are scared at what they may bring. But in those moments we can remember that God has our futures in His hands. Here are a couple of verses that I think are great reminders as we begin a new year.

          Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” God knows our future. He has plans for our lives. Even though we may not know what those plans are, we are assured that God knows them. And He will reveal His plans for us in His timing, when we are ready for them.

          Deuteronomy 31:8 “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

God will never leave us alone. He will always be right there carrying us through whatever hard time has come our way. He will also be there in the good times, just walking next to us rejoicing in the good times.

          Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” God has also promised to give us strength. We can do anything and everything God wants us to do, because He gives us strength. We can't do everything on our own; but we can do it with God's help. God won't tell us to do something that we can't do. Even when we think it's too difficult, if He has called us to do it, He will give us the strength and ability to do it.

As this new year begins, I want to encourage you to get excited about it. I know that we aren't always excited for another year. But this year can be different. We can look forward to this new year, because we have hope knowing that God has new and exciting things in store for us. We can look forward to the future with hope and joy, without fear because we have a personal relationship with the God of the universe, who controls everything. We can be excited and thankful for this new year, because God has another year full of new adventures for us.