2024 TIME FOR              A FRESH START

                                                  by Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D,

 The last day of the year is usually a time of great paradoxes!  It is a time of contemplation, meditation and remorse, as well as motivation and new resolutions.  It is also a time of forgetting the past and getting on with the future. The New Year is an opportunity for a new start for us all!  A time of wiping clean the slate and starting over.

New Year's should be a time to both remember and forget.  A time to do everything and nothing about the past, as well as work vigorously to do better in the future!

A time to forget the heartbreaks, mistakes and blunders we've made last year, because we are unable to correct them or retrace our steps.  We cannot live life over, gather up spilt milk or unscramble scrambled eggs.

But thanks be to God, we can live differently from today; we can change our lifestyles, improve our attitudes and make positive plans for the future.

THAT'S WHY WE NEED TO BOTH REMEMBER AND FORGET!

To realize our need for change, it is necessary to take stock of our lives.  How did we do last year?  How many hearts have we broken or healed? 

Have we contributed to the well-being of our fellowman, or have we been a hindrance? Were we kind, generous and helpful, or mean, uncaring and selfish?

Let us ask ourselves the question, "Have I been a stumbling block or a stepping stone, an asset or a liability, a part of the problem or the solution"?

December 31st should be stock taking day in all our lives, so that we will not repeat our sins in the New Year!

Once we have faced the situation fairly and squarely, we need to do something about it - like repenting of the wrong, making apologies to the people we have hurt and forgiving those who have harmed us!

We must get it off our chests, humble ourselves and repair the damage our actions have caused, by saying, "I'm sorry"! Let us not be stubborn, obstinate or stupid, but rather take the blame for our mistakes and seek forgiveness from God and our fellowman.

THEN THE HEALING POWER OF GOD WILL FLOW INTO BROKEN MARRIAGES, RUINED RELATIONSHIPS AND TROUBLED MINDS!

And we will forget all the unfortunate, sad and ill-conceived happenings of the past! Our nation will then begin to rise out of the quagmire of hopelessness in every area of life - spiritually, morally and economically!

It is not enough, however, to feel sorry for our past mistakes, we must resolutely make up our minds to chart a new course and stick to it!

It would be wise also to ask ourselves how we are doing intellectually and physically.  Have we let ourselves go?  Are we merely existing or are we living to the best of our potential?  Are we mentally and physically lazy?

Let's get out there where the action is and begin mixing with our neighbours and getting involved with life. For those who feel they did their best last year, let's do better this year!

My prayer to God for you, my Friend, is that you will have a happy, vigorous and prosperous 2024! For only the price of a cup of coffee every day, you could help us to reach multitudes more with the Gospel! - M.S.

Max Solbrekken World Mission Box 44220 RPO Garside, Edmonton, AB T5V 1N6; Email: [email protected]; comehometojesus.ca; Youtube; Facebook; Blog: MSWM; Donations can be made by e-Transfer. Make your donation to [email protected]; Thank you and may God richly bless you in Jesus’ Name. Amen.