New Years Day 2013.

In each of the last 6 years I have been blessed to grow closer to my Savior.  This has been my only resolution, to be nearer to God, but it encompasses everything.  And while I have failed so often in self improvement attempts, God never fails.  When we ask for good things from our Father, he delivers.  He delivers in his power and with spectacular results.  There have been some hard, painful years, but in those times he drew me nearer.  We can't avoid pain or loss in our resolutions, but there is peace to be had.  It doesn't come from our own efforts, but rather from our surrender to the one who Loves us most.  I am not above wanting to be healthier, wealthier and wise.  But when I attempt these things in my own power I end up wheezing, broke and dumb.

 Believing in God is not hard.  Even the most hardened cynic has a hard time shaking the notion that he/she was built by and for something greater.  Trust is hard.  Trust in God comes from believing that he Loves us as much as his promise says he does. The road to trust starts by focusing on who the person of Jesus Christ is and moving away from self focus.  We find our purpose in surrender to him, not propping ourselves up to self glorification.

To be closer to God, means to be vulnerable and willing to be weak.  When we step forward in obedience to serving others and giving of our selves, we become dependent on God.  It is a step out in faith, and growing closer to Jesus means expecting him to deliver.  Being open and available with our neighbors is to be vulnerable.  It is uncomfortable and if we are to be of use to him, we must be willing to be uncomfortable.  But if we trust in the one who made us, we will find that he is creating in us a home for himself.  We are becoming a new creation, built to receive and distribute his Joy.

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”  ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

My resolute hope to that I reflect more of Jesus this year and less of me.  I trust, and it has been proven time and time again, that when God gets his glory, we get Joy!!

Hebrews 10:19
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching."