Pursuit Week: A Time to Renew and ResetSample

Reflect 

A Year End Review 

Are you eager to sprint around the corner and get away from the year 2020? Whatever your feelings about last year may be, it’s worth taking some time to review and reflect before rushing into this next season. Although you may have experienced challenges, can you reflect on when and where God’s presence was evident, and the valuable lessons that He taught you through those trials? 

God tends to show up in the most difficult of circumstances. The day I lost my father, who was my hero, was one of the most painful days of my life. But this was the very same day that I completely surrendered my life to God and committed to serve Him no matter what, and this moment changed the trajectory of my life.  

Sometimes the best day and the worst day are the same day.  

So, as we review last year, we may have had a shift in perspective and priorities that we actually need to maintain as we go into the new year. But there may be other things we need to leave behind; things like fear, strife, anger, disappointment, and bitterness. As Hebrews 12:1 says, “let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  

We all have a race to run, but if we are stuck in past hurts, old mindsets, and bad habits we are not going to be able to run as quickly and efficiently as we would like in order to fulfill God’s call on our lives. When we reflect on the past year, we need to not only take the lessons and gifts forward with us, but also to lighten our load, we need to leave any heavy baggage from the previous year behind us. It’s time for a fresh start.  

As we enter the new year, we take the same stance as the apostle Paul: “one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13) 

Prayer & Reflection: Lord, what have You taught me over the past year that I need to take forward with me into the new year, and what do I need to leave behind?