Tell me, did you wake up on Jan. 1 and find all your problems had magically disappeared at midnight when the calendar rolled over to 2011? If they did, have you been booked on Oprah or Dr. Phil to tell the world your story?
Like many people, I spent some time last week contemplating the New Year. I found myself asking the same question I’ve asked for decades: Why do people view New Year’s Day with such enthusiasm?
For me, measuring my life in terms of years is a way to compartmentalize my memories. I can rarely remember what I had to eat for breakfast, let alone remember what kind of day January 6, 1974 was. But I can remember that in 1974 I graduated from high school, joined the Marine Corps, battled my way through boot camp, and then went off to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina to begin my life as an adult. I remember that particular years had more bad events than good and vice versa.
But that’s where it stops. If I’m halfway through the year and it’s been awful, I’m not telling myself that next year will be different. No, I plan to make the next day better because every day is another chance to start fresh! I don’t wait for a new year to turn things around. January 1, 2011 offered the same opportunities that Dec. 31, 2010 offered or that July 1, 2011 will offer for that matter.
The prophet Jeremiah tells us in Lamentations 3:23, “ Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.”
Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? Have you started on them yet? Have you started and already slipped up? Maybe the best resolution you can make for yourself is to remember that every day is a new day!
Debra L. Butterfield © 2011
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