“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
— 2 Corinthians 5:17
There is something about the New Year that draws people in. Perhaps it is the idea of having the opportunity to start completely over. We wait and wait for January 1st, knowing we have that one extraordinary moment to being again, somehow believing this will be the year those goals stick, the changes work, and we can become new.
Unfortunately, as the weeks go on and the specialness of that moment fades, so does our hope for change. We allow old habits to creep back in, silencing any attempts we have made. Perhaps some of the opportunities we have had will stick, but by and large, moist people are unable to sustain their change.
The beauty of being a Christian though is that we do not have to wait for that one special day. We are offered the opportunity to have a fresh start any time we ask for it. And once we have made that request, once we have made that commitment, it is eternal. We do not have to worry about the change staying because we become a new creature in Christ and His strength sustains our change.
Through His grace and power, Christ has the ability to create change in our lives, to offer us a fresh start. We simply have to ask for Him to come into our lives and stay there. Once we do that, He lives and His gift remains in our hearts and minds on a daily basis, grounding us in His love.