Well it’s a new year and a new look! No, I didn’t get a new haircut (for those of you who only know me through reading these articles, I have no hair). I am of course talking about the new format of the newsletter. And very nice it looks too (as does my haircut). There’s something about major events in life which provide inspiration for reviewing how we live and if there are any changes we’d like to make. A new job might make us reflect on our daily routines, or moving house might make us think about how much clutter we hold on to. Major markers of time seem to have a similar effect, particularly birthdays and new year’s. When dwelt upon too long such introspection can be unhelpful, but in small doses, they can be good opportunities to appreciate the journey we have been on so far and to check that we’re still happy with the direction we’re heading on, a little bit like checking the map when out on a walk.
Of course, we are not always as in control of our life’s journey as we might be of a walk in the mountains. Things happen to us that are outside of our control. Other people do things we’d rather they didn’t, and sometimes bad things just happen. But following a map in the mountains isn’t always so straight forward either. Sometimes the paths on the map aren’t there in real life or if they are there, they’re overgrown. Sometimes the weather changes dramatically and new challenges appear, and very occasionally you come across a farmer who tells you that you’re trespassing and can’t go any further. When things get difficult or don’t go to plan you have to take another look at the map and your surroundings and think again. It is however, usually best not to wait until things go totally wrong before you check, but to regularly make little checks instead. And perhaps it’s the same in life.
So maybe little and often is the order of the day, but birthdays only come once a year and whilst new years seem to come surprising often; new financial years, new academic years, and of course new calendar years, they are still less than frequent. If only I had a more frequent reminder of time drawing to and end and beginning again, like say, the passing of each day. Maybe instead of waiting until each new year to reflect on (and sometimes feel burdened by) how life is (or isn’t) going to plan, I should set aside sometime before going to bed each night. But what exactly would I reflect on each night?
As followers of God, the job navigating our journey through life is a little different. Although we might have paths that we want to take and destinations we want to visit, our ultimate aim is not to make it to as many of our prechosen check points as possible. Rather, our job is to own what we would like and then to say to God, “but if you have something else in mind, I’d rather go your way”. And so we plan our route as best we can from what we know of God and what we hear Him say, but He doesn’t tell us the destination from the beginning. Rather, He walks the journey with us, for it is in the journey with Him that we get to know, learn to trust Him, and fall in love with Him. It can be hard to let go of the things we want, never knowing if God will take us to those places or not. But something wonderful happens too; we lose the weight of responsibility of choosing what’s best knowing that we just have to follow Him. And every blocked path and by-passed destination is no longer a missed opportunity or a failure, but a redirection and a guiding hand leading us to a better way.
So this year, I think I won’t wait until next year to think about where I am, where I’ve been or where I’m going. Instead, each night I will try to take time to think about that day. To listen to where I think God might be leading me, to say sorry for where I’ve wandered from His direction and to thank Him for where He’s taken me and for always travelling by my side.
Originally written for the January 2024 ABC Newsletter
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