A New Resolve to Pray
by Terri Copeland Pearsons
I love the start of a new year.
God is all about fresh starts. His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
God is always looking forward. He is ready to assist us as we take on the challenges of a new day, a new year—a new start at anything. Unfortunately, too often we don’t take advantage of all the help and support that is ready to flow to us from heaven. Either we press into the future on our own or we procrastinate.
Oh, now there’s a word no one likes to hear, much less own up to. Why do we procrastinate?
Fear? In most cases, probably.
Depending on what we are putting off, it could be fear of failure, fear of something unpleasant or fear of the unknown. Or, it could be the fear of work (also known as being lazy!). Uh oh! I sense I hit a nerve on that one, too. Maybe not yours, but I sure felt it.
Letting Things Slip
Fear and laziness have shot down many a New Year’s resolution.
Are you thinking, 'New Year’s resolution? What New Year’s resolution? Who does those anymore?'
Well, if we don’t stop at least some time close to January 1, and reassess our priorities, we are apt to let some very important things slip. Some objectives, though important, don’t rate on the same level as others, especially natural things versus spiritual ones. For example, a new exercise program, though beneficial, can’t compete with the importance of time with the Lord. “For physical training is of some value (useful for a little), but godliness (spiritual training) is useful and of value in everything and in every way, for it holds promise for the present life and also for the life which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:8, The Amplified Bible). (That doesn’t mean we have a scriptural basis for throwing out the treadmill. Sorry.)
The reasons for spending time with the Lord on a daily basis are as vast as God Himself. Everything God is, He is for us. Everything God has, He has given to us. He has not withheld anything from His children: “Everything that the Father has is Mine. That is what I meant when I said that He [the Spirit] will take the things that are Mine and will reveal (declare, disclose, transmit) it to you” (John 16:15, AMP). It is only in fellowship with Him through His Word and prayer that we can discover who He is and what He has given us.
JAN '14 : BVOV : 19
