OUT WITH THE OLD... IN WITH THE NEW
Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Every year, the streets, houses, schools and other gathering places ring with the same melody. The sweet, nostalgic and hopeful song... "Auld Lang Syne" has become an absolute tradition in New Year's Eve celebrations across the country and around the world.
We sing the song... Or, at least, we sing the first couple of lines and politely mumble the rest pretending to know the words. Despite its huge popularity, it's a song that very few people can actually recite in it's entirety.
The song comes from a 1788 Scottish poem by Robert Burns; now set to the tune of a traditional folk song. Burns never intended his work to act as a farewell to the old year, but we've adopted it as a song to say goodbye to one year and hello to the next, generally as the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve.
The Bible has several scriptures that proclaim the same sentiment. In Paul's letter to the church in Philippi he talks about his past and the future with Christ. He doesn't look back but looks ahead to the future in Christ.
Philippians 3:13-14
Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
In Isaiah 43:18-19, the writer proclaims God's words to His people,
"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."
As we approach 2025 we should look forward with great anticipation as to what God has in store for us. What has gone by in our lives is in the past, its gone. We can't go back and change it, we can only move forward into the future to follow God more closely. He has a plan for us that begins today.
In the early 1970's there was a musical that produced a simple song that made it to #13 on the pop music charts. The song Day By Day, has only 4 or 5 main lines that are repeated over and over again. But if we enter the new year with the three main lines as our goal and then keep them, 2025 will be something to look forward to.
Day by day
Oh Dear Lord
Three things I pray
To see thee more clearly
Love thee more dearly
Follow thee more nearly
Approach the new year with hope and excitement as to what God has in store for you. "Forget what is behind and strain towards what is ahead".
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