Happy New Year!

A time to renew and look to the future…

A new year is upon us already – 2010 seemed to just flyby in a hurry didn’t it? Do you ever wonder why things ever have to change? Do you sometimes wish things would just stay the same, at least for a little while? I think as I’ve grown older I find myself sometimes wishing for that to happen. How we become creatures of habit; of routine, but is this really what God has destined for us? All one has to do, is take a look at God’s glorious creation to know that “change” is good as it creates the energy and variety that fulfill God’s plan for each of us. Seasons will come and go, winter, spring, summer and fall. Plants will sprout and grow and produce beautiful flowers then seed and blossom and eventually they will wither and die to start the process all over again. Nature’s change is constant and relentless. We can all learn from this.
God never wants us to keep our eyes looking at what lies behind – the “good old” days weren’t really all that good were they? I mean really, were they? Just think about what life in Phoenix was like in those “good old” days when few (if any) homes had central air conditioning in the summertime! Jesus taught to always keep our eyes focused on the future ahead, not to look back at the past;
“No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62 NIV) The moment we stop to look back, even for a second – it increases the chances of our making our furrows crooked, uneven or even worse yet, useless!
As we begin another new year, I challenge you to stay focused on the future ahead, seek out God – brace for change, enjoy it and savor the good of it but never look back! Instead keep focused on things of God, seek him earnestly and he will find you.
“Let your eyes look straight ahead, and your eyelids look right before you. Ponder the path of your feet, and let all your ways be established” (Prov. 4:25-26 NKJV) “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jer. 29:13 NKJV)

- Dave