Starting a New Year

Author: Rev. Esther Holmes
May 10, 2018
Think about it!    New Birth –
I Peter 1:3….In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Hope for the Future –
Jeremiah 29:11…For I know I have plans for you says the Lord – they are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
A new creation –
2 Cor 5:17…therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold all things have become new.
A new heart –
Ezekiel 36:25-27….and I will give you a new heart with new and right desires, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony heart of sin and give you a new, obedient heart. And I will put My Spirit in you so you will obey My laws and do whatever I command.
A new day –
Lamentations 3:22-24….Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh (new) each day. I say to myself the Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him.
Ending a Year
Ending a year often puts us in the mode of reminiscing about the past and what lay behind us and can overtake the excitement and joy that we should feel concerning what lays ahead.  Contemplate these scriptures today as we put this year behind us!
Forgetting the past….Philippians 3:13-14
No, dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, but I am focusing all my energies on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven.
Learning from the past…Hebrews 12:10-11
Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

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