New Year’s Day is one of my favorite days of the year, and not just because you get to lounge around in your PJ’s, eating snacks and watching The Twilight Zone marathon all day. No, no, there is far more to this day than that! It’s a day where we get to reflect on the years gone by, and think about what we want to accomplish in the future.

Can you do this any day of the year? Of course. But there’s just something about the beginning of a new year that makes all things seem possible. Like all of our dreams are finally going to come true.

One of my favorite things to do when I was younger, like many people, was to make New Year’s resolutions. Losing weight, getting into shape, getting that new job, cleaning up all the clutter. These are just a few of the more common things we tell ourselves we will finally get around to doing this year. Yes, THIS is the year things are going to be different!

And while these are all fine and lovely things to want to accomplish, I think there are far more important things we should resolve to do in the new year. Things that are less about ourselves, and more about serving God and others. We should really be asking ourselves, what can I do this year to be more loving? More compassionate? More giving? How can I work towards fulfilling God’s purpose for my life?

If you are a Christian, you know that there are times you feel closer to God than others. And it’s like the saying goes, if you feel further away from God, guess who moved? God is unchanging. But He understands how murky things can be down here. There is so much noise and so many distractions. So much negativity. It can be very difficult to stay on track. To stay in the light. So if you are feeling farther away from God, now is also a good time to repent and turn back towards Him. He is always there waiting with open arms.

And whether you’re a Christian or not, there are things that we can all do to be more loving and kind towards one another. Perhaps we could all make a resolution to have more patience and understanding towards each other. To not have an eye for an eye mentality. To be less focused on ourselves and more concerned with the feelings of others. Learn to take each thought and consider if it is something that helps build others up, or tears them down. And like my little buddy Thumper says…

Yes, if we all reflected just a little bit more about who we are on the inside instead of worldly things, just imagine how different our lives might be. But that’s the good news. We can take this time to turn things around. To change. To make this world a better place! It is possible. The power lies within us. We just have to want it bad enough!

So I pray that during this time of reflection, we all take some time to renew our hearts as well. May the peace of God be with you in this new year, and may it be the best one yet! Much love to you, my friends.