Happy New Year?
Here is a trivia fact to help you on your next quiz night or to show off: January is named after Janus. In ancient Roman religion, Janus, amongst other things, was the god of beginnings and endings, transitions, and frames. Today, January is more associated with resolutions, going to the gym, eating less, or “must visit so-and-so more often”: for all of two weeks (being generous).
In the transition from 2023 to 2024, is there newness? For some, Christmas is a blur of merriment, parties and family, with January simply returning to the ordinariness of the familiar routine. For others, there is the continuing drudgery of being alone, anxiety about making ends meet or fear of an ongoing abusive relationship.
What about you as you journey into and through 2024? More often than not, we are:
Stuck
Being stuck in a rut may happen without realising the need for change. Life, after all, is what it is..
Even knowing the necessity of change, niggles creep in. Uncertainty (the how, when, what, what, and when); the fear of moving forward; changing and reverting to what we know – all reinforce the rut and inability to change
Striving
Perhaps the worst position to be in. You know change is needed and strive to improve, but there is no traction. You are out of the rut, sometimes falling back, picking yourself up, moving forward, only to fall again.
Success
With steely determination, you are successful in applying change in your life. You have got it down to a fine art. Success?
But…
What change is needed? New job? House alternations? Friendships?
The real change that is needed is the inner transformation of the soul. If truth be told, we know about the peace and joy so often sung or spoken about at Christmas and think they are the answer. We then change in our lives to achieve this. We may even start going to church, being good, or helping out in the local community. However, peace and joy in Jesus Christ, real peace and joy, is not a one-off “ta-da”, I’ve made it. It is an ongoing relationship with Him. Church becomes the place of encouragement. Stuck? We have got your back! Striving? We’ll help you! Success? Okay, here’s the next area where you can work on to have continuing inner peace and joy.