During this season, a great deal of time is spent pondering the future and talking about all that lies ahead, and all that we are going to do to bring meaningful change to our lives and the lives of others around us. Resolutions are offered as verbal proof of our good intentions. Sometimes we follow through...sometimes we don't. In the heat of the moment, the shadow of guilt, or the blazing light of inspiration brought on by the threshold of another new year, it is easy to make resolutions, but the dark, cold days of January have a way of tempering our good intentions, and the momentum of hopeful expression gives way to the deflation brought on by the difficulty of following through.
Perhaps we try to change too much...to so radically change our lives that given our other responsibilities and distractions, our actions simply can't keep pace with our good intentions. Perhaps there is one thing, one aspect, one characteristic we could focus on and from that one focal point, meaningful change could truly occur.
Jesus said, "A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."(John 13:34-35, TNIV) We often speak of impacting the world around us and we think globally, as we should. But what if we allowed that love to impact our world, beginning right where we live, work, go to school, and worship. What if, for this new year, we focused on loving others as Christ has commanded. Would such radical change make a difference?
Maybe that's a starting place for you and me. Losing weight, managing time more effectively, taking up a new hobby, keeping your room clean...these are all worthy goals, but maybe, just maybe, making the love of Christ the priority for the new year will help you and me put everything in its proper perspective.
May the love of Christ be yours to share throughout 2010!
Jim Abernathy
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Where Have You Been???
Life gets complicated at times. Distractions are many and some things just don't get done! Issues and events, expected and unexpected, demand our attention and things we have been doing can be pushed aside or forgotten. Such is the story of this blog. I started writing this blog several months ago and have kept it current...until the last month. I could list the many things that have commanded my attention over the last several weeks, but then you would have to get out your list of complications to compare and we would both wind up whining on each other's shoulders.
Perhaps someone might bring up better time management, or a re-prioritization of schedule and focus. Someone might say, "You're doing too much...you need to let go of something." There is truth in all of these concerns, but I also know that at times, life simply presents you more than you can effectively handle and something slips. Most of us could manage our time better, but then again, many of us do a pretty good job given the number of dates, events, and life situations we have to handle. Yes, it is good to occasionally evaluate an re-evaluate our schedules and the way we manage them, but so many of the things that demand our time and effort are important to us and to others. It is easy to tell another that they should let go of something, but are we willing to let go of those things that are important to us? Sometimes we just get overwhelmed in the busyness of this 21st century world, and some things just don't get done. I am not offering an excuse or rationalization here for poor performance. I am, however, reminding myself, and hopefully you as well, that grace must often be applied in the context of our and other's shortcomings. To recognize our failures and commit ourselves once more to the tasks before us is to admit our humanness, and to strive toward a better understanding of who we and others are. And at the heart of this discussion is the One whose grace, mercy, and forgiveness restores and empowers us for the tasks that need to be done.
I will keep a closer eye on this blog, and I hope you will too. I will also seek to live more fully in the grace, mercy, and forgiveness of the Christ, whose birth we celebrate...and I hope you will too!
May you know the wonder of God, present within you through the gift of Bethlehem's baby, during this busy and blessed season.
Jim Abernathy
Perhaps someone might bring up better time management, or a re-prioritization of schedule and focus. Someone might say, "You're doing too much...you need to let go of something." There is truth in all of these concerns, but I also know that at times, life simply presents you more than you can effectively handle and something slips. Most of us could manage our time better, but then again, many of us do a pretty good job given the number of dates, events, and life situations we have to handle. Yes, it is good to occasionally evaluate an re-evaluate our schedules and the way we manage them, but so many of the things that demand our time and effort are important to us and to others. It is easy to tell another that they should let go of something, but are we willing to let go of those things that are important to us? Sometimes we just get overwhelmed in the busyness of this 21st century world, and some things just don't get done. I am not offering an excuse or rationalization here for poor performance. I am, however, reminding myself, and hopefully you as well, that grace must often be applied in the context of our and other's shortcomings. To recognize our failures and commit ourselves once more to the tasks before us is to admit our humanness, and to strive toward a better understanding of who we and others are. And at the heart of this discussion is the One whose grace, mercy, and forgiveness restores and empowers us for the tasks that need to be done.
I will keep a closer eye on this blog, and I hope you will too. I will also seek to live more fully in the grace, mercy, and forgiveness of the Christ, whose birth we celebrate...and I hope you will too!
May you know the wonder of God, present within you through the gift of Bethlehem's baby, during this busy and blessed season.
Jim Abernathy
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