You are welcome into the Year 2013 and I wish you a happy and fulfilling year ahead.
It is typical towards the end of the year to cast one’s mind back and conduct a review of what transpired during the year. On a personal note, I have every cause to give thanks to God for keeping me and my family alive and for all the accomplishments I was both able and unable to recall. Surely there were some areas of my review I felt I could have done better but overall I am full of gratitude to God and got ready to press the ‘reset’ button as the clock raced to end the year. It’s was time to say ‘goodbye’ to the one and only year 2012. Ironically some said and believed the world was going to end in the year 2012. It must have been quite disappointing for the believers in the apocalyptic predictions, the earth is still here and we are still on it.
‘2012, a year or I should say – a portion of time given.
Time well used or time wasted.
The truth is however we spent that allocated time resource, it can never be reused again.’
God is the owner of time and he allocates time to everyone for specific purposes. Without a reason or a purpose to be accomplished, time will never be allocated.
Ecclesiastes 3:1
“To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:…..”
The year 2013 is definitely the year the Lord had made and on this side of eternity, He has chosen us to be partakers in the events of this new year. Everybody’s got a role to play, if you wish, an assignment to carry out for Him during the time allocated for this year.
Irrespective of how you lived and – if you want to look at the subject from a performance point of view – how you fared in the previous year, the new year presents an opportunity to press the ‘reset’ button and have a fresh start.
God is a God of new beginnings. He loves to give us the opportunity to start again. Every dawn presents a new day and open door to a new begining.
Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, even the God of our salvation….…so that thy youth is renewed like the eagles…He restores my soul…..They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles….
(Psalm 68:19;103:5,23:3;Isaiah 40:31).
Peradventure during your review of the previous year, you judged yourself as not having the best of scores in certain areas of your life, then you have another window to make things right. If you failed outrightly in some ways, it’s not over yet. It’s time to arise and have a go at it again. I pray for your good success this year. If you somehow disobeyed God in any way in the previous year, God is a loving God and He forgives. You only need choose to turn away from whatever it is you know He’s not going to put up with in your life.
To enjoy the numerous promises God made to us, we must cultivate our relationships with Him, listen to the voice and leading of the Holy Spirit and choose God’s will. We need to agree with God and receive His promises by faith to enjoy these manifestations.The good news is that God has made his power and grace available to us again this year 2013.
(3 John 1:2, Deuteronomy 30:19, Ephesians 2:8, 1Cor.2:12)
His promises and will towards you has not changed, but you might not experience these promises if you do not cooperate with Him and receive those things by faith. Major hindrances to our receiving from God would always be fear and unbelief that the enemy sends against us to stop the power of God from operating in our lives. (James 1:5-7, Hebrews 3:18-19, 4:1-3).
Remember also that we are in a fight and our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, but be rest assured that if you stand up to every challenge and resist the enemy they are bound to flee.
Romans 8:
The Message (MSG)
31-39 So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:
They kill us in cold blood because they hate you. We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.
God is not our problem, God is our father, our enabler, the author and finisher of our faith.
The greatest feat and proof of his love and power towards us was manifested in the virgin birth, life, death and resurrection of His son Jesus Christ. God gave us everything that we could and ever need in Christ. His blood purchased the grace that we live to ever enjoy. Look inside of yourself if you are child of God, there is boundless power and possibilities bubbling therein.
In all your endeavors this year, remember the person who is in and with you and fully supporting you, He is the God of heaven, the maker of the ends of the earth. He is the omnipotent – the all powerful, the omniscient- the all knowing, the omnipresent – the ever present God. Everything you need is already available in Him. You however, need to stretch forth your hand by faith and receive the manifestations of all He’s already done for us by grace. (Romans 5:17, Ephesians 6:10-18)
…Having done all to stand, stand ye therefore..
We reign in victory in the year 2013.
Shalom!
Laolu Oyeyemi