Christ

“So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
2 Corinthians 5:16-17 NLT

Strictly speaking these are not Scripture verses specifically about the New Year but they are appropriate none the less. The old year, 2021, has gone. We will never have another year like it (thank goodness I hear you say!). We are today at the start of a New Year, 2022. So what are we going to do with it? Traditionally, people set “New Year’s Resolutions”; a list of good intentions that seem to dissolve into thin air within a few days. But instead do we continue to bumble along in the same old way, tired and weary, trapped in a merry-go-round of drudgery, wishing that some light would penetrate our gloomy lives?

Today’s verses bring the light that we yearn for. For those who don’t know Jesus in a personal way, they highlight the opportunity we have to begin a new life. For those who are Christians, and perhaps have been for a long time, they provide the opportunity to hit the reset button. You see, becoming the “new person” highlighted in verse 17 isn’t a one off occasion that has passed into dimming memories. It is a daily opportunity. Notice the exclamation mark at the end of verse 17. It highlights and emphasises the momentous possibilities that we have when we start a new life in Christ.

But back to our question – what are we going to do with this New Year? More specifically, what am I going to do with it? I have a few ideas, but are they God-ideas? The amazing thing about this new life in Christ, is that He will help us all as we commit our ways to Him. A life of service to Him is an exciting place to be. The opportunities are endless. Here’s a radical suggestion, which I am going to follow this morning. I’m going to ask Jesus to show me what He wants me to do with this year, 2022. I think I might be surprised at His answer. Try it. He might surprise you as well. But be prepared – God always answers our questioning prayers.

“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Saviour,
who daily bears our burdens.”
Psalms‬ ‭68:19 ‭NIVUK‬‬

How can it be that every day, God will bear our burden? That’s what David wrote in this verse in Psalm 68. But what is a burden? The dictionary refers to a heavy load – imagine a rucksack filled with all that is needed for a camping trip and food for a week. And we have to carry it for miles across the Scottish moors. Another definition is perhaps something repetitively unpleasant, that needs to be dealt with every day.

But what is the Psalmist referring to? I think his mind is dwelling on the difficulties of living in an environment where things are hard. An environment where every day issues and problems weigh us down but have to be faced and they never seem to go away. The burden of caring for a loved one, who is suffering from an illness that never seems to get better. The burden carried by a parent trying to look after a child with acute learning difficulties. The burden of dealing with an illness such as arthritis, so severe that just getting up in the morning is almost too much to achieve. Even the burdens associated with our senior years, where, physically, we now cannot do the things we used to find so easy. The burdens that the Lord will carry are those that we are struggling to carry ourselves. And we cry out to Him for relief, in faith receiving the help we need. We cry out to Him daily, perhaps many times each day, because He is always there for us. And many testify to God’s burden-carrying help.

God uses His people to become “burden bearers”. It says in Galatians 6:2, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfil the law of Christ.” So today, daily, we must look around us to see who is having difficulty carrying their burdens. Paul in his letter to the Galatians wasn’t supplying an invitation. It was a command to do something in accordance with God’s law. It may be something as simple as putting out somebody’s refuse bins. Or running an errand. Or helping with transport to a hospital appointment. Something practical and simple that costs us little but helps the person in need through a crisis that otherwise would have been almost too much for them to bear. It could also be to invite someone in for a cup of coffee and a chat, because loneliness can be a terrible burden. Yes, it may cost us something in terms of our time and money, but who knows, one day we too might have an intolerable burden we struggle to carry. We must pray for God to reveal to us what burdens He wants us to carry on behalf of others – we will probably be very surprised at what He says!

So we can look up to our wonderful Saviour God, praising Him for His intimate interest in our everyday lives. I’m looking out of my office window as I type. All quiet at the moment. No obvious burdens or people in need. But wait a minute – the lady next door might need a lift to the shops. Perhaps I need to knock her door and ask her. And what did God say to me in my prayer walk this morning?

A New Year

Burdens