Happy New Year!
The message below is not original to me. It was posted by an American pastor (if my memory serves me) last year but remains wonderfully relevant to this.
‘As we flip the calendar and look ahead we as Christians are reminded of this great truth: we are closer.
We are closer to faith becoming sight and the day when we will walk in Immanuel’s land. Think about this truth: with the turn of the calendar…we are that much closer to dwelling in the everlasting kingdom of Christ!
All of the longing for full-undiluted joy will be met. All of the temptations to sin will be removed. All of the pain over fractured relationships will be healed. All of the tears over lost loved ones will be wiped. All of the lurking shadows of the evil one will be vanquished. All of the false teaching will be muzzled. All of the division in the body of Christ will be sorted out. All of the flesh will be mortified. There will be no more fleeting moments of joy but rather we will be enveloped in the experience of what is now mysteriously called inexpressible joy! We will no longer fear but trust perfectly. We won’t be bitter but rejoice wholeheartedly. The flickering flames of guilt, shame, insecurity, lament and doubt will be extinguished in the ocean of Christ’s infinite merit. The doctrinal realities will become our daily experiences. The longing will be met with lasting joy. We will in fact be there.
I can’t wait to walk with my brothers and sisters in Immanuel’s land with faces made radiant by the Holy Spirit. As I turn the calendar I do so with longing: and the daily weights of life in this flesh only serve to increase it.
There is good news! In [2017] we are that much closer… May it be soon!’