A New Year’s Blessing
“And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” -John 12:32
“my personal cares fade when I plead with Him in intercessory prayers for others and give myself in service to the souls who need to know Christ and His glorious gospel.”
Beginnings and endings are difficult for me-- including the beginning and ending of each year. What intensity of emotion, what weight of reflection, and what pressure I feel to begin or end well. I want these closing and dawning moments to unfold with the reverence, beauty, and formality they deserve. I fear that I will somehow fail to live up to the moment, and so feel overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of beginnings and endings. When I was a little girl, I even felt crippled by the task of writing the first page in a new diary-- felt the burden of expressing myself with a worthy introduction. Not much has changed, hence, this delay in composing Chapel’s first entry of the new year.
And yet in this striving, I know I am prioritizing my performance rather than relying upon God’s grace. These pressures would dissipate if I removed my focus from myself and and surrendered in sweet and total dependence upon Christ, Who alone “is able to keep [me] from stumbling, / And to present [me] faultless / Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24). So much of my strife comes from thinking about myself— from ending the year and beginning another with an inward focus. The very nature of New Year’s resolutions tends to draw us inward, as we reflect on personal ambitions. Yet how much more Christ would be glorified if I turned my focus outward in wholehearted pursuit of His kingdom. My personal cares fade when I plead with Him in intercessory prayer for others and give myself in service to the souls who need to know Christ and His glorious gospel.
God in His mercy rescued me from my doldrums and selfish cares this Christmas and New Year’s. In the past, it has been my tendency to indulge in feelings of loneliness and sorrow during holidays. I feel the absence of those I love, who are not here. I miss my sweet puppy, the dog who was (and is) so knitted to my heart (here she is, precious in the photos for last year’s New Year entry). I feel just as keenly the absence of those I have not yet met—the husband and children I long for. I feel myself missing the stages of life I have wanted, for so long, to arrive. There are Advent prayers I long to pray over my someday family, and Christmas hymns I want to sing together. I want to tie ribbons in a daughter’s curls and read Christmas stories to a dozing baby. I imagine making snow angels and gingerbread cookies and maybe, even, going ice skating again, if only to teach my children. I yearn to give these moments as a gift to my parents, who are so exquisitely tailor-made to be grandparents, and long for them to share in this joy. Part of me is mourning those moments, moments I have not even lived. Part of me is in this imagined place, even when I am here.
“Part of me is mourning these moments, moments I have not yet lived.”
And historically, I have not enjoyed New Year’s—I somehow always allow myself to be derailed by something. I expect, every year, for it to be a painful day. It can all get rather self-indulgent; although many of these desires spring from the purest place in my heart, I can lay the pity on pretty thick. I tend to fall apart on “big days,” overwhelmed by the desire for them to be beautiful, wanting everyone to be happy, and sad over all the things I cannot bring about.
But the first precious minutes of the New Year, God allowed others to be at my side, to pray with me and for me. There was no room to worry about myself or to live up to anything-- God gathered us in a holy moment, in His everlasting embrace, and we were simply held. Clasping hands, my family-- including my beautiful parents and my precious cousins Rob and Jossie-- offered the new year to the Lord. We prayed for the fulfillment of many specific requests, including those precious desires we have waited so long to see. We asked God to bring the answers that only His hand can provide. But most of this prayer time was blessedly focused on pursuing God’s kingdom. Led beyond ourselves, we could only respond in worshipful awe and adoration. One moment particularly moved me, as my cousin Rob began his prayer, “Lord, let this be the year we lead others to You.” And what could be a more astounding privilege than this, than to allow Christ to express His life in and through us, drawing others to Himself (John 12:32).
“Candles flickered and tables and topiaries were beribboned and beautiful.”
Over these days, I watched as my loved ones poured themselves out in sweet sacrifice to Christ and others. I marveled at my Mom, who lifts gift-giving to the realm of fine art, with presents so exquisite and personal, each recipient feels delighted in and adored. I sat by her side as she poured countless hours into others’ joy, going past all known limits to make them feel loved. How willing she is—she will go quite literally to the ends of the earth-- to give a gesture of grace. She adorned our home with décor that looked like an expression of her beautiful spirit. Candles flickered and tables and topiaries were beribboned and beautiful. Sweet garlands graced mantels and tables and a china hutch, and the staircase looked frosted with freshly fallen snow. On the mantel was displayed the little shops and homes of a pastel village, and each table place setting was personalized with paper trees and gingerbread houses. Everywhere there were velvet bows in sumptuous shades: powder blue, blush, celadon, olive, ivory, terracotta flecked with rose gold, and pure gold, the color of starlight. Ribbon bows were tied on taper candles and tucked into tree limbs, nestled next to golden bow ornaments. Gingerbread houses topped the prettiest, pastel packages, and tulle bows, sparkling with floral appliqués, made each present look storybook beautiful. Every detail was so charming, adorable, lovely, and sweet. Blessed by both her exquisite eye and devoted prayers, our home looked and felt like a hymn, an angel’s song. Our guests felt welcomed in a space that radiated grace—Christ’s love and acceptance, expressed through her willing heart.
I found myself overcome with gratitude that I belong to a family who has made my life so thoughtful, artistic, creative, visually beautiful, and loving. Our home reflects not only a devotion to design, it radiates the intangible beauty of prayer, grace, faith, and giving. It would not look and feel as it does if it were not for my mother’s endless, continual, and daily surrender of her life to Christ, her complete willingness to pour out her heart and talents on behalf of others. Every visually beautiful thing reflects an act of service and reminds me of how wholeheartedly she has served our family, with such exquisite tenderness and care.
My Dad gave up—without even hinting at sacrificing anything—his time and effort to helping family with difficult tasks. I looked at these daily actions, these acts of love and caring, and realized they are enormous. Silent but so consistent, with no need or effort whatsoever to draw attention to his good work. My Gram and Papa celebrated their 65th “sapphire” anniversary, and we shared an awe-inspiring devotion on Isaiah 54:11, “And lay thy foundations with sapphires.” The devotion contemplated the “deep foundations of the work of grace are as sapphires for preciousness, no human mind is able to measure their glory” and meditated in worshipful admiration upon “the person of the Lord Jesus, which is clear and spotless, everlasting and beautiful as the sapphire; blending in one the deep blue of earth’s ever rolling ocean and the azure of its all-embracing sky” (from Spurgeon’s Morning & Evening Devotions, “December 15, Evening”). I praised God for the legacy of faith they have left to us, for the endurance of their love, and faithful walk in Christ.
My cousins Rob and Jossie spent Christmas and New Year’s with us, sharing sweet fellowship and memories of their mission work. What marvelous stories of God’s provision and grace! Rob, an ENT, corrects cleft palates, giving small children and adults so much of their lives back. Jossie, his wife, lays cool towels on their shoulders and prays over them, like a ministering angel at their bedside (these patients often wake up from anesthesia asking for her). On beholding her new face, one beautiful girl with sad, serious eyes wept in wonder. Here was the arrival of a future she never thought possible: “now I can get married,” she whispered.
We listened as they told stories closer to home, introducing us to new people to pray for. We were brought closer as we shared one another’s burdens and cried out in prayer for loved ones and for those we have not met, whose stories nonetheless touched our hearts. What a privilege we felt, partnering with God in prayer, and placing others in His care. I watched and wondered at the overwhelming beauty of a life surrendered to Christ, given as poured out wine and broken bread to others. “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone,” cautions our Lord; “but if it dies, it produces much grain” (John 12:24). I was reminded of how painful, small, and isolated life becomes when we dwell on our desires. And yet how God gives to us, one hundredfold, when we are willing to give to Him. He tells me that if I lose my life, I will find it, and I know this to be true (Matthew 16:25). God is so kind-hearted; when we water others, we ourselves are watered; in dying to self and living to Christ, we find purpose and identity, and an antidote to our fears.
How our personal cares tend to flee when we seek first His kingdom and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33). How much freedom we experience, when we realize our lives are not our own, and we were created to crown Him with glory (Isaiah 43:7).
“For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified,” wrote Paul in 2 Corinthians, his life’s theme culminating in the beautiful verse, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). In the new year, may we know no will but God’s will. May we be willing to die to ourselves, to determine to be His and His only. And how He will work, giving us joy beyond our wildest imaginings, even as we face sorrow and difficulty. May this be the year we are concerned more with others than ourselves, and seek God’s kingdom come, God’s will be done.
We were saved not to keep the inexpressible riches of our inheritance to ourselves, but to share them with others. Each time we are given a spiritual blessing, we are to “give it back to Him as a love-gift,” writes Oswald Chambers, urging us, “to offer the blessing back to Him in a deliberate act of worship. If you hoard it for yourself, it will turn into spiritual dry rot, as the manna did when it was hoarded (see Exodus 16:20). It must be given back to Him so He can make it a blessing for others” (from My Utmost for His Highest, January 6 Devotion). I was saved from something—the sin-debt that I could not pay—and yet I was also saved for something, namely, to share Christ’s message of salvation and redemption with others. I am freed from something-- my sin and my shame-- so that I may be freed to something—freed to serve others. Freed to walk in the blessed assurance of salvation and proclaim the gospel in Christ’s strength, grace, might, and name.
I hope you will join me in prayer for those precious ones God places on your heart. I pray that, if it is God’s will and God’s timing, you will be blessed with your heart’s precious desire. I pray for the fulfillment of that which you have waited so long for: the blessing which God has perfected in the unseen, even as He has perfected you through the disciplines of waiting, patience, commitment, and faith. And I also pray that you and I are led beyond ourselves to seek first the Kingdom of God. I pray that concerns for others break through our concerns for ourselves. That we allow Christ full freedom to work in our lives to draw others to Himself.
May our language, our actions, our smallest gestures, and our countenance proclaim His glory, and not our own. May we give Him full lordship over our time, talents, and resources, using us as earthen vessels to display His treasure. And may others be drawn to the inexpressible grace of a life surrendered to Christ, and come to know Him intimately. The most precious gift of all, the dearest privilege, the most glorious blessing, the pearl of matchless price. May they know Jesus, and in Him find their all in all.
As I walk into the new year, I am reflecting on Ephesians 1:15-23, and using Paul’s rich, profound prayer for others. As you read it, please accept it as a prayer from me to you, and perhaps pray for others you know to receive these blessed promises. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” -Ephesians 1:15-23
“Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory…” What tender love we read into these words, as Paul writes that He continually presents these Christians to God in prayer. Imagine the honor of someone naming your name to Christ, thanking Him for the gift that you are. How loved you would feel— how blessed. What a treasure it is to have our fellow saints intercede for us and bring our burdens, joys, and very being to God in prayer. Paul demonstrates a focus on building up the Kingdom of God; how practically and spiritually, wholeheartedly and consistently, he dwells on others. The prayers written in His epistles are always concerned with the sanctification and spiritual enrichment of the believers. How beautiful, to prioritize not needs and desires but instead intimacy and fellowship with Christ. May we, in God’s strength, so commit ourselves to intercessory prayer, pleading with God for others to accept Christ and walk in Him. May we recognize what a privilege it is that God allows His children to become a part of His blessing to others.
And may we realize how much more surpassingly beautiful it is that we have Christ as our compassionate High Priest who lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 2:17-18, 4:14-16, 7:25). When He presents our petitions before God the Father, He points to His wounds and points to our names, which are written on His breastplate, graven on His hands. He prays that we will not fall into temptation (Luke 22:32), and protects us even when we forget to ask for help. “When we pray,” writes Spurgeon, “He pleads for us; and then when we are not praying, He is advocating our cause, and by His supplications shielding us from unseen dangers.” He never forgets us or lets up our cause. He remembers us (Jeremiah 2:2). “Because His soul delighted in them, He could not rest away from them, for His heart longed after them” marvels Dr. Spurgeon, “Never were they absent from His heart, for He had written their names on His hands, and graven them upon His side. As the breastplate containing the names of the tribes of Israel was the most brilliant ornament worn by the high priest, so the names of Christ’s elect were His most precious jewels, and glittered on His heart. We may often forget to meditate upon the perfections of our Lord, but He never ceases to remember us.” May we follow the example of our faultless, faithful, tireless, and eternally devoted High Priest, Jesus our Lord. May we remember His children in prayer, and above all may we remember Him— in His suffering, His death, His ascension, His Kingship, His Priesthood, His eternal reign and glory.
“That you may know the hope of His calling…” Without Christ, we are without hope, at war with God, with no way to relate to or fellowship with Him. Yet once we accept Christ, we become God’s children, a permanent part of His family, His heirs and recipients of His glorious salvation. What infinite hope is this! In Christ, we are utterly safe. Being justified by His blood, we stand securely in grace. We never have to fear Him leaving us, for He has promised never to forsake us (Hebrews 13:5, John 10:27-29) and has poured out His life as our merciful High Priest who lives to intercede for us (Hebrews 7:25). The people and things that bring us joy on earth can easily leave us, but “God’s love is unconditional, and once we accept His love through faith in Jesus,” writes Dr. Charles Stanley, “nothing can ever break our bond to Him (John 10:29).” As long as Christ lives and reigns, we have hope—and He will live and reign forevermore.
“Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5).
“For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Romans 8:29).
“what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints…” Perhaps you know someone who is a child of God but isn’t walking in the fullness of the freedom of his or her position in Christ. May we pray that they would be liberated to walk in the freedom that Christ died to purchase for them. May they be freed from tormenting fears (1 John 4:18) so that they are freed to serve others with holy boldness. When fear loses its hold on us, and we are no longer consumed with worries about our own personal security or salvation, we have the potential to become powerful and effective witnesses.
May we take time to meditate more often on the great truths of God, the inexpressibly beautiful blessings that surpass our biggest dreams. May we know the promises that are ours in Christ, and appropriate them through faith, writing our name on each promise, making each one our own. The first chapter of Ephesians lays out the contents of the believer’s inheritance, and its splendors surpass comprehension. What dazzling riches are ours in Christ! We could only ever begin to comprehend them in the light of glory. Our inheritance is filled with “every spiritual blessing” (Ephesians 1:3) and is secured for us in heaven for all eternity, where no one can steal or damage it (1 Peter 1:4).
May Spurgeon’s words of reassurance, quoted from the January 10 Morning Devotional, wash over you in waves of relief and gratitude:
“Doubting one! thou hast often said, "I fear I shall never enter heaven." Fear not! all the people of God shall enter there. I love the quaint saying of a dying man, who exclaimed, "I have no fear of going home; I have sent all before me; God's finger is on the latch of my door, and I am ready for him to enter." "But," said one, "are you not afraid lest you should miss your inheritance?" "Nay," said he, "nay; there is one crown in heaven which the angel Gabriel could not wear, it will fit no head but mine. There is one throne in heaven which Paul the apostle could not fill; it was made for me, and I shall have it." O Christian, what a joyous thought! thy portion is secure; "there remaineth a rest." "But cannot I forfeit it?" No, it is entailed. If I be a child of God I shall not lose it. It is mine as securely as if I were there…
Poor doubting one, see the fair inheritance; it is thine. If thou believest in the Lord Jesus, if thou hast repented of sin, if thou hast been renewed in heart, thou art one of the Lord's people, and there is a place reserved for thee, a crown laid up for thee, a harp specially provided for thee. No one else shall have thy portion, it is reserved in heaven for thee, and thou shalt have it ere long, for there shall be no vacant thrones in glory when all the chosen are gathered in.”
“and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places…”
The most precious gift that we, as believers in Christ have, is His perfect, eternal Presence with us (Matthew 1:23, Ephesians 1:13-14). The blessed Holy Spirit who dwells in Jesus abides with each child of God (Romans 8:15-17, 1 John 3:25). God’s same power which raised Jesus from the dead is available to help, support, and strengthen His children. May we give Jesus our full obedience, that we may watch and wait to see Him display His resurrection power in our circumstance. Nothing is impossible for God.
"Do you realize that adversity helps you experience Christ’s resurrection power? Remember: there is no resurrection without the crucifixion. There must be an end to all of your self-reliance so that you can rely solely on God and His power can flow through you… As long as there’s even a drop of self-reliance in you, you will fight God from healing and working through you— from allowing His life to course through you. And so, through difficulties and challenges, the Lord cleans all that out so that you’ll be an effective conduit for His resurrection power.” -Dr. Charles Stanley
“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” -Ephesians 3:20-21
