Charles Lamb said “New Year’s Day is every man’s birthday.” We’re just a few days away from changing the calendar, so we’ve all got a birthday coming up. This gives us a chance to reflect a little bit on the past 365 days and, hopefully, focus a lot on the next 365 days.
If we choose, we can wipe slate clean from yesterday and begin a new day. There’s nothing special about January 1, of course, but there is something special about the decision to break away from old habits and develop new ones. It can be done any day — January 1 is as good a day as any. The important thing is to devote oneself to doing better and trying harder.
It was said of Hezekiah: “In everything he undertook in the service of God’s temple and in obedience to the law and the commands, he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. And so he prospered.” (2 Chronicles 31:21)
A decision to seek God more and serve him without reservation — this a great way to begin the New Year, or any new day. — SM
