Your God

Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.

Isaiah 41:10

Here we go again.  It's January, the time when our thoughts naturally flow toward the future.  What will the new year bring? Will it be better or worse than the last?   Will we experience an unimaginable calamity, or an unforgettable blessing? Or will it just be another average year without major highs or lows? Will I be the person God wants me to be - has created me to be - or will my year be marked by underachievement?

In all honesty, the last question might be the most significant. There is almost nothing we can do to control what happens this year, but there is much we can control about our response.  Too often I repsond out of fear, primarily the fear of failure.  Fear that I will not live up to my end of the bargain.  Fear that I will lead this organization down the wrong path, or that my decisions will cause pain for others.

As we begin this new year, my focus is not on what may or may not happen, but how I will respond. My prayer is that I will experience the peace of God, which is the opposite of fear; that I will trust fully in him through whatever may come; that I will truly believe that he is with me, and that he is my God.  

My prayer for you is the same.  May the God who is ever with you - your God - pour his blessings out on you this year!