The New Year And The Old Year

There is a tendency to think that new is better: new technology, new phones, new fashions, new house, new job.

 

'New' suggests hope and potential.  'New' suggests improvements.

 

In the same way, there is a tendency to view the new year as being guaranteed to be better than the old one, simply because it is 'new'.  We can look towards the new year as a sign of hope.  We can find ourselves full of excitement and anticipation for what's to come.

 

But in emphasising the goodness of the 'new', sometimes we can dismiss all of the 'old' as being bad or inferior.  It is easy to throw it all out in one go, without sifting through to find the things of value.

 

Instead, we need to learn to accept the good and the bad in our lives, in others and in ourselves together.

 

David prayed,

 

         "Investigate my life, O God,
         find out everything about me;
         Cross-examine and test me,
         get a clear picture of what I’m about;
         See for yourself whether I’ve done anything wrong—
         then guide me on the road to eternal life."

 

         [Psalm 139:23-24 MSG]

 

 

As the old year comes to a close, and we inevitably spend time reflecting on the year past and the year to come, let's acknowledge both the good and the bad and ask God to guide us on the road to eternal life.