New Year's Fresh Start

[The Midweek Encounter is a ministry of Encounter Church in Kentwood, MI. These posts are reflections on Sunday's message, which can be heard here each week: http://encounterchurch.org/messages] 

Photo credit: Flickr Creative Commons user Nanagyei

As the countdown to January 1, 2017 began, my thought process looked a little something like this:

I really should make more time to exercise; we bought that elliptical last year after all. And instead of watching reruns of 24, maybe I will create and implement a cleaning schedule for our house. While I’m at it, I might as well re-organize our closets and pantry, shedding all our excess stuff and starting fresh. And I should definitely be consistent with my devotions each day, and probably learn how to teach my baby sign language, and the list goes on and on.

New Year’s resolutions often seem like the one opportunity each year to get it right—to finally eat healthy food, exercise often, read good books, focus on professional development, spend more time with family, volunteer, or reach a number of personal goals. The hype around a fresh start can’t be ignored, with countless advertisements for discounted gym rates and the “new year, new you!” mantra popping up on our screens. It’s easy to get sucked in and think that this might be your year to change whatever bad habit, fault, or shortcoming you may have.

However, I think we often lose sight of the big picture when we focus on temporary artificial improvements in our lives. And, unlike the media’s portrayal of New Year’s, we get an opportunity to change more than once per year. God offers us an opportunity to experience eternal change when we meet Him and encounter His love, grace, and salvation—and that can happen at any moment.

Paul writes in Ephesians 4:22-24:

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

The Ephesians are being reminded that the only way to move on from your former life and “put off your old self” is to allow the Holy Spirit to renew your mind and start making you more like Christ. When you allow God to meet you where you’re at, He can remove your brokenness and sin, and begin the process of eternal change.  When you act upon your faith, you are being continually renewed in Christ.

So this New Year, instead of focusing on which habits to break or artificial changes to make, consider allowing God to renew your heart through personal relationship with Him. Through that intimate connection with Christ, your heart will change and it will be evident in everything you say and do. Allow Christ to give you a fresh start—to no longer let sin define who you are, but to accept the salvation of the cross and act in faith to begin a personal relationship with Him.

[Megan Stephenson is a proud new mom to her six-month-old son August and spends her days trying to figure out how to take care of her tiny human. She also works for a private education group in Grand Rapids as an Assistant Registrar. Megan loves spending time with her husband, Ben, trying out new breweries, restaurants, and local attractions. She also self-identifies as a crazy cat lady, despite owning no cats of her own, thanks to her loving and allergic husband.]