Another year has ended but not before memories have been deeply rooted. Two great grandsons—Boaz and Isaac—have been added to our family tree. (To say we are thrilled does not begin to describe the emotional impact their births had on us!) But the year has also been infiltrated with sadness: the loss of five friends since Thanksgiving, and relational dynamics that continue to remain unresolved. But a new year brings hope and promise with the constant reminder of Jesus’ words in Mark 9: “All things are possible to one who believes.”
For several years I have been reading words spoken by Oswald Chambers that have inspired me, motivated me, and, all too often, challenged my spiritual soul. His words have been condensed for daily reading in My Utmost for His Highest, and each year as I’ve reached the reading for December 31, I’ve wanted to share his thoughts but have not. At the risk of breaking copyright rules—I’d like to think he would give his blessing on my sharing!—please allow this great man of God to challenge us all as we move into another year.
Security from Yesterday. At the end of the year we turn with eagerness to all that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to arise when we remember our yesterdays. Our present enjoyment of God’s grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday’s sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present.
Security for Tomorrow. God will send His forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were not our “rear guard.” And God’s hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience.
Security for Today. As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in the haste of impetuous, forgetful delight, nor with the quickness of impulsive thoughtlessness. But let us go out with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. Our yesterdays hold broken and irreversible things for us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ.
* * * *
Let the past sleep, but let it sleep on the bosom of Christ.
Leave the Irreparable Past in His hands,
and step out into the Irresistible Future with Him.
Oswald Chambers
Follow Me!