New Year, Same God...2015

Five years ago I saw a sign that said "New Year, Same God" which inspired the January 9th blog of that year. The truth of that message is still so relevant today, I wanted to share it with you again.

Well, we are two and a half weeks into the New Year. How are those New Year’s resolutions holding up? Some people are saying that this is not going to be a good year. Fear, instead of confidence, is inspired when they look at another year of financial insecurity or the actions of our elected officials or the greed of corporate America. Many others are dreaming and hoping that this is going to be “the year.” They are hoping that this year will be different, better. “This is the year I get that new car …go on vacation …get that new cell phone.” These are not necessarily New Year’s resolutions, but a declaration of our determination to have or do that new thing that has been unachievable in the past. We are always looking for that something new to improve our lives. New, better, faster machines. And, oh, by the way, let’s make them as green as possible. Some people have admirable hopes and desires for the New Year – “This is the year I start that retirement fund and spend more time with my family. This is the year they find a cure.” The truth is that no one knows what the next 346 days will hold. It’s only the hope or fear we cling to that determines our outlook on and approach to the future.

The days ahead may be unpredictable and filled with the anguish and delight of the human condition but our God remains the same. He’s proven himself repeatedly not only in the pages and the books of the Bible but in the days and years of my life. He is the same God who created the universe in the first chapter of Genesis and the same God who caused David to lie down in green pastures in Psalm 23. He is the same God who sent his Son to be born of Mary and who died on a cross and rose again for man’s salvation. He is the same God who gave me life, who placed in me the determination to overcome abuse, and who held the pieces of my heart together when my son died. He is the God who resides in my heart now, guiding me through this river of time we call 2015. When it comes to God, there is no new improvement. There’s no better package. There’s no new formula that can enhance the perfection, the majesty, the power and the love that is the unchanging God we serve. I don’t know what will happen over the next year, but I do know that the same God who saw me through the last will see me through the next. That’s where my hope for 2015 comes from. So I know it’s going to be a good year, no matter what happens, because it will be a year with God at the heart of it.