Happy Last Year
By Grant Gaines
As we welcome the New Year it’s a time for new beginnings, it’s a time for new dreams, new hopes, and most importantly, it is time for New Year’s resolutions. And while we like to think of ourselves as pretty creative beings, when it comes to our goals for the New Year we tend to become rather repetitive. Year after year the top 10 New Year’s resolutions across our country are fairly monotonous-losing weight, improved finances, exercising, getting a new job, eating healthier, managing stress levels, stop smoking, improved relationships, stop procrastinating on life dreams, and setting aside more time for one’s self .
So as this New Year rolls in, what are your resolutions? Well, if you’re tired of picking one of the same ole same ole goals for yourself, can I tell you the resolution that God wants you to have? No, it’s not eating less and exercising more (though those could never hurt!), the resolution that God wants you to have is a little more unique than that. You see, we typically celebrate the New Year by setting future goals and looking ahead to what we want to achieve in the coming year. However, in the book of Exodus God did a total 180 on this mindset as He instructed His people to first look back before moving forward into the New Year.
Right before being rescued from Egypt’s powerful oppression, the Lord pulled Moses and Aaron aside and told them, “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year” (Exodus 12:2, NIV). In other words, this was Israel’s January 1st-the first day of the New Year.
After the Lord gave instructions for how the Israelites would be delivered through the Passover, God told Moses, “This is a day to remember. Each year, from generation to generation, you must celebrate it as a special festival to the LORD. This is a law for all time…When you enter the land the LORD has promised to give you, you will continue to observe this ceremony. Then your children will ask, ‘What does this ceremony mean?’ And you will reply, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, for He passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt. And though He struck the Egyptians, He spared our families…'” (Exodus 12:14, 25-27, NLT).
And when was this annual celebration of reflection to be made? During the “first month” of their year (Exodus 12:18). In fact, this is the first thing the Jews were commanded to do at the beginning of every year-take a week to celebrate and remember the Lord’s Passover (Exodus 12:14-20).
God didn’t want His people to look ahead at all they could potentially do in the coming year before taking time to look back and remember all He had done for them in the past. God knew that if His children didn’t make it a habit of celebrating His faithfulness and victories in their lives, they would be in danger of forgetting Him all together as they moved forward.
With that in mind, what do you think the first thing we as God’s children should do as the New Year kicks off? I think it’s a fairly safe assumption to do the same thing as we read about in Exodus-take time to thank God for all He has done in our lives over the last year.
I know we just finished up a holiday season which included THANKSgiving amongst other holidays, but can we really thank God enough? Do we really ever run out of things to worship Him for?
I believe that it’s when we truly take time to slow down and live with an attitude of gratitude that we are liberated from so many future fears and worries. When you reflect on all the Lord has delivered you from in the past, all of the sudden that problem at work, that hiccup at home, or that untimely news from a doctor doesn’t have near the same sting as it does when you live your life in the fast lane. The uneasiness that comes with life’s uncertainties seem to melt away when we take time to remember God’s ever present nature. An increased sense of dependence, desperation, and devotion erupt from our hearts when we realize the works of the Father’s almighty hand in our lives.
Look, I’m not trying to dissuade you from setting goals for this New Year-I believe it is healthy to have achievable goals for us to strive for. Even Proverbs 29:18 (NIV) seems to echo this belief when it warns, “Where there is no revelation [or future vision or goals], people cast off restraint….” Instead, I would like to suggest that God’s will for your life as you kick off this year is to give thanks for the past before setting goals for the future.
So before hopping on the treadmill or filling out that new job application, set aside 15 minutes at the beginning of every day this week to rejoice in what God did for you over the past year. Because it is when we first look back that we are able to truly move forward.
Comments? Questions? Suggestions?
©Grant Gaines 2013
