As another year draws to a close, it seems wise to spend some time looking back on the events of the past year to what worked well and what worked not so well. There are memories to savor and cherish, and some to put as far behind us as possible. There are successes to celebrate, and failures to move on from. Whether as individuals or as a community, spending time to reflect on the year that has been 2023 will afford us a learning experience for which we’ve already paid the price, and sometimes the very things that we want to put as far behind us as fast as possible provide us with the most wisdom as we look to the new year.
Now, we don’t have to try to learn from the events of this past year. 2024 is going to arrive whether we reflect on the past or not, and those days to come will count down one at a time until, 366 days later (yes, leap year!), we find ourselves staring at the arrival of 2025. If we decide not to spend any more time trying to learn from the lessons that 2023 presented to us, the days of 2024 don’t care. Those days will continue to arrive, in order, with the stroke of midnight announcing the passing of one day and the arrival of the next. And we can take a similar approach, allowing each day to come and go, the new year to arrive and pass, and just flow along with the sands of time.
Or, we can make a conscious decision to grow, taking the closing moments of 2023 to take stock of what worked well in the past year and, perhaps more importantly, what didn’t work well. What bad habits did we cultivate, and what good habits did we break? What were places that brought us joy, and which brought us pain? Who do we need to spend more time with, and who should we perhaps draw back from? How are we changing physically and mentally as we get older, and what compensatory measures should we take? Are we growing spiritually, or have we been stagnant and need to make changes?
Failure to assess ourselves and make changes for 2024 doesn’t guarantee that this new year will be just like the last, because this next year is going to be significantly different from 2023, in many ways that we can’t predict. Yet if we decide that there are ways to improve ourselves and our community, and then actively seek to make those improvements, we will likely be better prepared to handle whatever 2024 does bring. It is also possible that, if faced in 2024 with the same experience that caused you considerable pain in 2023, the wisdom that this past year’s experience brought you will allow you to navigate the situation in 2024 in a manner that brings joy instead of sorrow.
We all have the same number of days left as 2023 draws to a close. I pray that you will make the most of them, setting yourself up for the best shot at success in 2024.
Peace, blessings, and a happy New Year – Pastor Aaron