TODAY IS…

the perfect day to look forward with confidence.

“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”  Deuteronomy 31:8 NLT

When Moses was 120 years old he passed the mantle of leadership to Joshua. Moses told Joshua that he could go forward with confidence and as this year comes to a close, we can all look forward to next year with confidence if our plan for the New Year calls for living to do God’s will.

Today marks the end of this year, and many of us are probably looking back at what we have been able to accomplish, or what we have left undone. Perhaps we are pleased with the way we have tried to live godly lives, or maybe we feel that we have somehow fallen a little short.

Could we have done more if we had done things differently?

Possibly, but we must never be too harsh on ourselves when applying hindsight. As we all know hindsight is always 20/20. But it is important that we try to look into our hearts to see if there are things we can – and should – ask God to help us change for next year.

If we are including God in our plans and if we are praying for guidance, wisdom, and to know His will for us, we can look forward with supreme confidence because we know He will be there clearing the way. We have His assurance that He will not abandon us and we know that when we ask Him to direct our steps and guide our thoughts and our actions, that He will never lead us in a direction that will harm us.

God will take our hand and show us how to serve Him by being compassionate, kind, generous, loving, concerned, caring, and helpful to everyone we meet.

We can choose a spectacular year of service and, “You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying Him, and committing yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your life.” Deuteronomy 30:20a NLT).

Increase the demands you make on yourself as far as your willingness to reach out to others in the year to come. Raise the bar for yourself and see how high you can reach. Keep God in your heart and think of Him always.

When we think of God first, we will find a way to do something good that will last.

Celebrate all the work you have done in this past year and then look to the future with confidence, knowing that the best is yet to come.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson