Has the year ever been new?
Since infancy, I have always wondered if there ever was a new year. On the arrival of December 31, off we go to church; for hours we pray, cast out demons, enter into family houses to break generational altars, claim our riches, claim our marriages and crown it with resolutions. I just can’t say much for Muslims.
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At a point, this act became boring and disappointing because nothing really changes after December 31. It has always been the same ‘me’, same environment and most of all, the so-called New Year sometimes becomes worse than previous ones.
I almost questioned my pastor’s position as a man of God and what he meant each time by ‘This year is your year.’ However, I have always been grateful for one thing; ‘life’ - my only consolation.
I must confess my gratitude to God this year not only for life but also the understanding of a New Year. The Bible says; ‘As a man thinks, so he is.’ So a new year is not the observation of December 31, neither is it the celebration of January 1.
Rather, it is a total renewal of the mind; appreciating life as a gift, a conscious analysis of how we perceive things, doing well the things we can, loving genuinely, embracing who we are and being self-disciplined.
Every day of our lives should be celebrated as a miracle other than wait for the end of the year. Once our eyes are opened to this fact, we will learn that every day is an opportunity to become a better person and take advantage of the opportunities life presents us. Monday or any other day of the old year and the New Year are not different, it is what you do differently on the New Year’s Monday from the old year.
Many have suffered disappointments and are frustrated because their prophesied New Year miracles didn’t turn out to be what they expected. Much is dependent on the individual rather than perceived miracles.
I am a bit uncomfortable what Christianity has been reduced to in recent times, maybe it is time our religious leaders taught us certain principles such as attitudinal change and principles of God.
A prophecy is only a confirmation that God knows what your plans are and approves them; so ideally you work at those plans and he blesses you; rather than idling and expecting a miracle. Nothing good or bad happens just by chance, they are consequences of certain actions.
As a nation, a good or bad year has little to do with the government in power. The greater work lies with the individual, the floods are likely to sweep us off our feet again if we still throw rubbish indiscriminately about.
We will continue marking time for as long as we don’t practice any such thing as ‘maintenance culture’. The newness of a year is dependent on every individual and what you make of life each day.
