New Year 2009

What doom is predicted for 2009! We all know about the credit crunch, global warming and we’re watching casualties mounting in yet another middle-eastern conflict. Is there any point in making any personal resolutions this year, when our world at large is by some accounts becoming a worse place?


Yes. Yes there is a point. Some of the most impressive changes in lifestyle require nothing in the way of personal finance, good weather or even world peace. When did you last thank the bus driver, converse with the checkout assistant or, dare I mention it, say hello to an unknown fellow pedestrian? Start small with realistic resolutions; attempting the radical chocolate reduction plan first isn’t famed for boosting belief in a beleaguered willpower after a sweet &sticky, caffeinated Christmas.


Aiming high, however, is not necessarily off the menu. What do you most want to change for the better? If the project goes beyond the selfish superficial, God is an interested investor. Ask him. The Bible, and contemporary experience, show that God cares about the prayers of anyone, from the first-timer to the freestyler. God’s business is ‘making better’ – whether character or commitment. Jesus Christ made better a world where people didn’t know God personally until he lived among us and identified with us. If your New Year’s resolution is just to get to know him, and what he’s about, it could be the most significant year of your life.