HAPPY NEW YEAR AND MORE…

It is getting close to the end of 2017 and the beginning of another year. Time seems to have gone so fast and I feel as if the New Year has come before I am ready for it. Maybe it is because there has been such big changes in my life recently. And change is hard, it can be difficult and it can be painful and exhausting. 

Of course I am not alone in my heartbreak I need only look at the newspapers or listen to other people around me to see a world in despair. Illness, loss, political and financial instability, broken homes and lives, such deep sadness and anxieties press in on every side or so it seems.

Yet here we are on the cusp of 2018 and we will celebrate, we will shout and sing and say or text and tweet to all we meet “Happy New Year”.

But it doesn’t seem to be enough.

Happy New Year when you may be facing difficult days because of the death of a loved one, or illness, or a confusing and hurtful situation. You may be facing redundancy, marriage breakdown, family break up. 2018 may not be a happy year for you.

Sometimes “Happy” is not enough- it won’t cover all the sorrow in life. We need something more than happy, something that goes beyond the now, something that is eternal.

If you need something more than a perfunctory greeting as the clock strikes a new year in, begin by remembering that God has not just given a new year but He has given us new life in Him.

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come

Romans 6:4

Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.

Remember the past and look ahead to the future, remember where you have come from and look ahead to where you are going.

Jesus came, died and was resurrected and He is coming back. Because of this we have hope and we have new life as He lives in us through His Spirit.

What a gift, new life in Jesus, the greatest gift of all.

Not only has He given us new life in Him but the promise that He will make everything new gives hope in even the darkest hour. It might not look or feel like it but God tells us

 Isiaiah 65:17:  

For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind.

Revelation 21:5

And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

So if “Happy New Year” just won’t cut it for you, if it just isn’t enough to cover the pain and heartbreak weighing you down, you can look beyond this. You can gaze upon Jesus, the One who gave His life that you can have new life. Look to His kindness, his mercy and his grace that is extended in love to you not just as the clock strikes and rings in a New Year but He is available every moment of every day and gives hope not just for the moment but for tomorrow and the next day for this New Year and the next.

Hope for eternity.

Are your hands full?

Are your hands full? Full of laundry, or shopping or dishes or work tools? No matter the time of life you're in right now whether its motherhood, career progression, or caregiver to eldery parents if you are like me I'd guess your hands are so full and at the end of the day your brain is mush, your muscles ache and tiredness doesn't do justice to describe how you feel. 


Then the added pressure of Christmas season piles on eating up your calendar from all sides...go there, come here, do this, do that. Oh and smile and be merry and don't forget the reason for the season, don't forget, dear christian, to share and teach one of the greatest miracles of all time. There are lots and lots and lots of resources to help you to teach you kids, colleagues, parents, whoever. there's over a billion self help guides sitting in your inbox and weighing down your bookshelf to help you (okay a little exaggeration but you get the point!). It is all good and it's not difficult but when your hands are full just one little request is enough to derail you and knock you off your tightly managed schedule.

The other day I was just in from work, chopping vegetables and preparing dinner and in between stuffing the laundry into the washing machine when my youngest grand-daughter asked if I could drive her to Santa's shop, NOW. 
One little request is enough to derail and knock you off your tightly managed schedule...

This is a busy season, it's christmas time, but then, when isn't it a busy season? Motherhood's a busy time, career building that's busy, care giver that's busy, retired with grand-kids that's busy. When isn't it a busy season of life? when do you ever not have your hands full?

Time is something you cannot beat, you can't speed it up and you can't slow it down. So mothers, daughters, colleagues embrace where you are, embrace the beautiful mess of your current season.
Truthfully I am convinced the devil will steal your joy through distraction and busyness, they are his ploys and lies to keep us constantly on the go so that we never stop and wonder.  We never stop to wonder at the truth and beauty and love of God. How He loved us so much and gave us so much, the wonder of a beautiful Saviour given, His love displayed for us.

If we are not careful we will miss it, we will miss the most precious moments of this season of our lives. We will busy ourselves with the tree and lights and decorations, we will buy and wrap gifts, we will dress up and head out to all the parties and christmas will come and go and some will breathe that sigh of relief its all over for another year. And we will miss it.



Are your hands full and your heart empty? Set down the laundry for just a moment, reschedule and make room for what really matters. Breathe, look around you, look up let the wonder of Jesus the Saviour seep into and through those aching, tired and weary bones. It will probably be hard, I doubt it will be easy, but it will certainly be worth it. 

My prayer is that we will not miss it.











and I wish you a happy christmas.

Amanda