NEW YEAR 2015

Somebody needs to hear the truth. Yes, the New Year is a fresh start. But you'll be going into it with the old you. (That's just the nature of the beast) All the bad habits, issues, personal hang ups, insecurities, sorrows and secrets will be trailing behind you like New Year's streamers or like the tail of a kite.

Yes, the new year is a big blank page in a book of a fresh 365 days that you may... or may not be blessed to live all of and there are many goals and dreams that lie waiting for you to take on. But... I just want to remind you that there is a book full of life-giving pages that are already filled up. The words on those pages are sometimes black, red, or in italics... and there is so much to be gained. In this book is freedom from that kite tail of the same ol junk you've carried with you into each new year. In this book is strength for all that the new year will bring. In this book is opportunity to make the most out of yourself and to be used to bless others. So let me be very clear. Your new year may be a fresh new start with resolutions to finally master that major accomplishment or task... but you don't have to make fresh marks on the canvas without a manual.

You don't have to reinvent the wheel or fill your 365 page book up with a bunch of things you wanted and dreamed of... that's a lot of work to do solo. I personally don't want to go another year without my pages full of God's Word and a closer relationship with Him.

What if what I want in 2015 is a new house, a new car, and an improved husband... but what I NEED is a better soul? A kinder heart? A more forgiving spirit? A disciplined life?
I'm not bashing new year's resolutions or the excitement of going into a new year. If anything I'm emphasizing what/who makes it more exciting. You see, the same God of 2014 will be asking for a deeper relationship with us in 2015. So let's not wipe the slate entirely clean (forgetting what He has done for us) and let's not waste our life's ink writing another year of life according to our own way and in our own strength.

I've failed in many ways this year. If I have been truly better in any way at all, it has been in living closer to God and asking Him for His Word... finally my pages have more substance.

So, for all my friends seeking a better self in the new year. Seek Christ, read His word, and pray intentional prayers to beef up your relationship with Him... Listen and pay attention for answers... Spend time in the "seeming silence" of those moments together with Him... and as you draw closer to God you won't believe, as you enter 2016, all that He brought you through and how you grew in 2015. It may just be the best 365 pages or canvases you ever painted, because if there is anything good or meaningful or of worth... we gotta get the paint from Him

I love you all!

Happy New Year from all of us Josiahs!
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