Look Back, Step Forward

 

May I be the first to wish you Happy New Year on this New Year’s Eve!  New Year’s Eve for me has always been one of those cross-over days.  A day when you reflect on the past and look to the future.  Hence, the name of today’s post!  First is always the look back.  Did I set out and accomplish what I wanted?  What made me happy?  What disappointed me?  Care to reflect with me?

Disappointment and sadness.   This reflection can come pretty quickly as we think about 2023.  There could have been a loss of a family member or friend.  Possibly a relationship dissolved or there was a loss of a job.  One’s health could have been the source of sadness.  That trip that was going to happen in 2023 was never booked.  Those goals that were going to be achieved in 2023 seem like a million miles away.  The state of the world and all the destruction can certainly fall into this category as well.

Yes, there are two sides to every coin.  Accomplishments and happiness.  How did God bless you in 2023?  Maybe new family members were added to a family through birth or marriage – we received little Brielle into our family this year!  New relationships of love and friendship were fostered this year.  New jobs were gained, and professional accomplishments were reached.  New healthy habits and a better lifestyle, letting go of addictions, were reached.  Finally seeing that special place in the world that was on the bucket list was enjoyed.   For the disappointment that we may have experienced, I am very certain that there was also happiness.  I urge you to find 30 minutes, pen, and paper in hand, to jot down the blessings you received from our Lord this year.  I can promise you it is an exercise that will bring smiles to your face and will fill your heart with gratitude to God.  Our God is good, and is blessing are rich.

It is hard to do as our verse for today suggests, forgetting what is behind and straining for the future.  Yet, that is what each year brings to us, an opportunity to strive forward.  It is easy to think about what went wrong this past year and to focus on all the sadness that brings.  What God gives us, each day of the year not just on New Year’s Eve, is the hope in the future.  He gives us a chance to wake up each day and walk with Him through this life.  Who better than to journey this life on earth with?  God presents each day with new hope, new mercies, new blessings for us to enjoy.  I am aware that not each day is going to be a picnic, but when you invite God into your life each day, it will bring someone for you to walk with on those tough days. 

May 2024 find all of us focusing on the blessing of our Lord, enjoying, and finding a blessing each and every day, with the focus on the gifts God gives us.  When those disappointing and sad days occur, let us end the day with God, asking for His help to forget what is behind.  When we arise the next morning, may we also ask for His help in straining for the future.  Here is to a God-filled 2024.  Happy New Year!

Dearest Lord, thank you for the opportunity to reflect on the past.  May we cherish our blessings and learn from our disappointment.  Help us to strain towards the future and ensure our focus is on you.  Amen!

 

Gift of Grace

 

Here we are, the last Advent Sunday – Christmas Eve!  It is a different Christmas in our household – one that is a bit quieter.  As our children have grown and have other families to visit during the holidays, we have made the arrangement as many families do to have one year on Christmas Day, and one year another day in December.  We had our family Christmas about a week ago, so this one will be a bit different.  Although I have struggled with this, I also realize the blessing in it.  The major chaos has been replaced with quiet – a time to reflect on the gifts our Jesus brought with him when he came to earth.

This week, the last Advent in this series, focuses on the Gift of Grace.  The gifts we reflected on this Advent season are punctuated with Hope, Love, Joy and Peace.  Yet, the Gift of Grace is the one, for me, that means the most.  Once I was able to wrap my head around the difference between grace and mercy (see last week’s post on mercy), I realized that grace is what is given from God that I don’t deserve.  That list is certainly lengthy as I walk through the blessings I have received despite who I am, a sinner. 

God has been good to us – to each of us.  He richly gives to us what we don’t deserve.  We find favor with God purely from faith.  As we believe who He is, He gives to us what each of us needs.  I will be honest, there have been times in my life that I wondered if God had grace upon me.  Life was difficult, very difficult.  Each aspect, whether it be love, health, or finances – all of them seemed to be far from what I needed.  As always, God knew better.  The gift of His blessings come in His time, not ours.  They come when we need it most, and He always provides.

The gift of grace is seen most in the greatest gift Jesus gave us that Christmas morn so long ago.  He was born to die – a death that erased our sins and saved us from a lifetime of eternal death.  With His birth, and subsequent death, He brought to us eternal life.  Without Jesus coming to earth, the salvation of the world would never have been given to us.  Numerous gifts Jesus brought with Him, but the greatest was the grace He bestowed on us for a lifetime with Him.    

On this Christmas Eve, may we celebrate Jesus’ birth – and the grace that He gave us – eternal salvation.  I wish you and your families a wonderful and blessed Christmas.  May God’s Gift of Grace be bestowed on all of us.  Merry Christmas!

Dearest Jesus, thank you for the Gift of Grace.  May we reflect and be eternally grateful for your grace that leads to our salvation.  Amen!

Gift of Mercy

 

Third Sunday in Advent – the time is flying by this Advent season!  Then again, I say that every Advent season!  As we continue our journey of some of the gifts Jesus brought to us, we certainly can’ t continue on that journey without stopping at mercy!  Mercy and grace always used to be ones that would cause me confusion.  Then I saw this simple explanation:

    Mercy is NOT getting something you deserve.   Grace is getting something you DON’T deserve.

When it comes to people in my life, I am grateful that there have been situations where they have shown me mercy.  Growing up, although I KNOW I did not look at it in such gratefulness at the time, I am certain my parents showed me mercy for not giving me something I so deeply deserved – like a punishment for something I did wrong.  Moving forward, there have also been times when I have been granted mercy with my spouse, my children, friends, and coworkers.  In all those cases, where I have not conducted myself in the way I should, there has been forgiveness and mercy.  I am so grateful for that.

There are also times when we should show mercy on ourselves.  Yes, looking in the mirror for mercy can be healing.  We may carry with us a sin (or many sins), that we cannot seem to shake.  We hold onto them, and they reside like boulders on our shoulders.  Having mercy upon ourselves provides us freedom from those sins and helps us to walk a bit more upright in forgiveness!

Forgiveness is at the heart of mercy and is certainly at the heart of Jesus.  He not only came to earth knowing He would die for our sins, but to take away our own punishment that we deserved.  He showed us, and continues to show us, mercy every day.  Look at your day – how many times does Jesus bestow mercy on you?  With my day it is too numerous to count.  Jesus provides me mercy in each situation – not just the small ones!  I deserve eternal damnation for the sins in my life, but Jesus freely gives the gift of forgiveness and shows me mercy in every case. 

It is hard to forgive or have mercy on another when they have done something wrong – especially against you!  Our natural tendency is to fight back with an “I’ll show them” attitude, providing some sort of punishment.   Maybe you have been harboring that for exceedingly long with a particular individual.  This Advent season let us look deep in our souls and provide another the gift of mercy – not giving them the cold shoulder or working hard to make their life miserable.  Free not only them, but yourself, and provide mercy.  Jesus gave gifts so that we could give those gifts to others.  It is time for us to give Jesus a reason to say, “Job well done my faithful servant.”  Give Mercy!

Dearest Jesus, thank you for your gift of mercy.  We certainly deserve eternal damnation for all we have done.  Yet, you show us mercy instead – forgiving our sins and not punishing us with hell for the sins we commit.  May we also have mercy on ourselves and others to continue the gift of mercy here on earth!  Amen.

Gift of Presence

 

The second week of Advent already!  Time is flying by this Christmas season.  With all the preparations and busy schedules, finding time to be alone in your own thoughts may seem rare.  Yet there are those who are only feeling a sense of loneliness this Christmas.  It may be that they miss a loved one who has passed.  They could be searching for that special someone in their lives.  Friendships may have been broken.  Hard times may be upon them, and they choose to retreat inward to solitude.  There are many reasons people may be lonely this Christmas.

Being lonely, even with a room full of people around you, can certainly reign true.  It could be that the people who surround you cannot see inside your heart, where a feeling of loneliness is residing.  Having lonely moments can be tough to work through.  Who really knows my pain?  Who can really see my despair?  Many times, people on earth CAN’T see all of that.

There is one who sees it all and is with us all, Jesus!  When He came to earth that Christmas morn, He brought with Him his everlasting presence!  Would I have loved to have been next to Jesus side during the time of His ministry?  YES!  Would I have enjoyed walking down a dirty path with him – in awe of it all?  YES!  What I need to remember, what WE need to remember, is that He is next to me, He is walking with me, with us!

Jesus gave us the gift of His presence – not with all that He did for us while on earth, but also His presence with us while he waits for us in heaven.  In moments of loneliness, there is one who can see our pain, one who can see our despair, and one who can take our loneliness away.  What a friend we have in Jesus!  He is with us not only for all the good in our lives, but more importantly, for all the dark moments as well.

I find this most comforting when the thoughts at night run through my mind.  So often, sleep is replaced with thoughts of what I should do that I’m not doing, how I could have done something differently and a sense of loneliness through it all.  This is when I run to Jesus.  I imagine him sitting next to me at my bedside, smiling at me, ensuring that I know he is always there for me – wherever my mind takes me. 

Jesus wants us to know that we are never alone.  Whatever our situation may be, Jesus is right there with us.  He is holding our hand, listening to our worries, providing support not from afar – but right next to us.  Christmas can be a time of loneliness.  Friends, if you find yourself there – go to the One that is always there for you, Jesus.  If you know someone who could use a friend, a person to listen, be present for them as Jesus is present to you.  Give them your time, hold their hand, listen to their worries, and provide support.  You may find Jesus is working through you as He gives you the gift of His presence!

Dearest Jesus, thank you for the gift of your presence.  During times of loneliness and despair, let us be reminded that we are never alone.  The gift of you being here for us always fills our hearts and souls.  

Gift of Rest

 

Welcome to Advent!  Preparing for Jesus’ birth comes in so many ways.  This year, my Advent series is going to focus on the gifts Jesus brought to us.  I agree – there are too many to focus on just four.  We certainly have the gifts of Hope, Peace, Joy and Love, the gifts that represent the Advent candles.  This year I thought we could focus on others that elude us during the holiday season. 

I was chatting with my husband as I made my 15^th list of the holiday season, about how this holiday seems busier than some of the others we have had.  The cooking, the cleaning, the decorating, the shopping, on top of 10+ hour days at work has me just plum tired.  And we are only at the beginning of December!  Yet, we both agreed that although this year is a bit busier, we wouldn’t trade it for the world. 

This time of year busy seems to take over our lives.  The activities we put upon ourselves to ensure a successful holiday season can run the amuck.   It’s the perfect decorations, perfect gift searching, perfect menu choices, perfect outfit for the party, etc. that can lead us to a life of ‘busy’ for four to six weeks.  The big push is on for perfection!  Yes, I am right there with you.  

It is not only the activities that create busy, but also all the thoughts that run through our minds that can create busy and weary.  The anxiousness of forgetting something.  The thoughts of loved ones who may have health concerns – or your own health concerns!  Worry over financial struggles. 

All of the above can find us exhausted and burdened, especially during the holiday season.  Our ability to stop and enjoy eludes our days and our evenings are left with thoughts scrolling through our minds leaving sleep an act in futility.  My friends, as always, our answer to all of this comes in the One who came to us, Jesus!  His arrival on earth provided us with hope, joy, peace and love.  It also provided us with this message for rest. 

Whether it is during the holidays or any time of the year, our ability to rest can be difficult.  This passage always reminds me where I can rest, body and mind, in the arms of Jesus.  He is there to take the burden from me.  Can He make those Christmas cookies for me?  Maybe not, but He can certainly change my mindset from chore to fun.  And He always reminds me that perfection is NOT the name of the game, but love.  One of Jesus’ greatest gifts comes in taking our burdens – our worry, our anxiousness, our concerns.  He wants us to rest from those things and we can only rest when we go to Jesus.  Giving Jesus our burdens creates a space in our minds and hearts for Him!  Laying these burdens at His feet, exactly where He wants them, provides us the opportunity to see things more clearly. 

Jesus came to earth to give us the gift of rest – in body and mind.  During this Christmas season, let us seek out Jesus’ arms to fall into.  Give to Jesus our burdens so our focus can be on His love.  May this Advent bring you rest in Jesus.

Dearest Jesus, as we prepare for your birth this Advent, may we remember to rest our bodies and minds in your arms and your word.  Amen