The New Year

Spurred on by a request to share a thought about the New Year at a gathering of friends tomorrow evening, I found this reflection by Kathy at In Quiet Places. Her story of writing devotional thoughts after her children had grown up mirrors my own dreams...
This year, I dare to dream of writing more.
I'm not a fan of New Year celebrations - every day is a new beginning in my book - but just as Christmas affords an opportunity to look back and reflect on the year past, summarising our lives into a hopefully-not-too-boring-Christmas letter, so the New Year is a spur to considering the future.
This year, Mary de Muth has challenged me to ask God for a picture.
This year, I 
Then another post about praying for strangers. What a challenge.  Could I, too, pray for a different stranger every day FOR A YEAR?  Could I? Just pray a blessing of goodness and mercy and peace and love and joy - how difficult would that be?  Surely not.
And then I came across a post entitled The Selfish Christmas Prayer by Sarah Markley
Wow.
This is her prayer for Christmas. I want it to be mine for this New Year:

Lord, make me scared 

that others are hungry and let me seek to feed them. 

Let me be fearful 

that others do not have enough and let me try and meet needs. 

Lord, make me more worried 

that others are loved and cared for than if I am loved. Let me be anonymous in my giving and unnamed in my helping. Let it be Your name that is used.

Selfish as it may seem, 

don’t just feed the hungry this season 

but instead change me. 

Work on me:

let me focus on the changing of my own heart so that in that,

I might help to serve the world.

And I started off this whole New Year idea with the words of a familiar song by Glen Campbell - here it is sung by the Statler brothers: 

Let me be a little kinder
Let me be a little blinder
To the faults of those about me
Let me praise a little more
Let me be when I am weary
Just a little bit more cheery
Think a little more of others
And a little less of me

Let me be a little braver
When temptation bids me waver
Let me strive a little harder
To be all that I should be

Let me be a little meeker
With the brother that is weaker
Let me think more of my neighbor
And a little less of me

Let me be when I am weary
Just a little bit more cheery
Let me serve a little better
Those that I am strivin' for...

So, as I opened an email this morning, I found this quote (again - it came from a different source yesterday) from Isaiah, “Do not call to mind the former things or ponder things of the past. Behold I will do something new. Will you not be aware of it? I will even make rivers in the desert, roadways in the wilderness.” (43:18-19).
Something new in this new year.

Psalm 51

I have always liked Psalm 51, particularly the words “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.” (verses 10 – 11)

Psalm 51:6 - 9
Surely you desire truth in the inner parts;
you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.

But The Message version (verses 6 – 17) is even more challenging:

I've been out of step with you for a long time,
in the wrong since before I was born.
What you're after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life.

Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from grey exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise.

Going through the motions doesn't please you,
a flawless performance is nothing to you.
learned God-worship
when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love
don't for a moment escape God's notice.

Hmmm.