A Time for Forgetting and Straining

As the clock ticked to Midnight millions shouted “Happy New Year!” The New Year begins with a lot of hope. We hope the New Year will be different than the year which is now past. We hope the travails, disappointments, illnesses, calamities, debts, wars, killings, and everything else which was negative in the year past will stay in the in the year past.

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. (Philippians 3:13) To set the context, the writer is speaking of perfection in Christ. I think it is an apt text for us as we move into the New Year. Note the two active verbs forgetting and straining.

If we truly want 2015 to be different than 2014 we need to forget what is behind. 2015 will be no different if we carry the hurts, offenses, disappointments and all which drug down our spirits into the New Year. 2015 will be no different than the year past if we insist of doing the same things in the same ways.

2015 is a new opportunity for us. This is where the second verb in the verse above comes into play. If we want 2015 to be different we have to put serious effort to making it so. We must strain forward. Straining forward carries the picture of exertion of great effort and energy to make progress. As the New Year opens the image is not that of coasting along with the wind to our back. It is difficult to set a new course for our life or our congregation.

We make resolutions indicating things we want to change or do differently. We resolve to lose weight, to be more careful in our spending, to grow in our faith, to exercise regularly. Sadly, most of our well intentioned resolutions are like the dew which passes under the strength of the sun. Keeping our resolutions requires commitment, effort and determination. We often have to strain forward if we are to stick to our resolutions. Just making the resolution does nothing unless persistent action flows from the resolution.

It is not uncommon for church boards to have a retreat shortly after the New Year for the purpose of assimilating new members and for setting goals. Too often the goals are so generally stated, like many of our resolutions, it is impossible to measure any progress. If we resolve to lose weight we either think we have to lose a “ton,” to succeed. The other option is if a pound is lost to claim victory. We may resolve that our congregation will experience numeric growth. If we gain one member is that sufficient to declare the goal achieved? Or is it thought that the numeric size of the congregation must double? Ideally, the goal will be enough that we have to strain to reach it, but not so grandiose that we give up early knowing it will be impossible to accomplish.

Thanks be to God, we have entered a New Year. Will it be different than the year past? It can be if we are willing to forget what is behind and to strain forward for what lies ahead. May God give us grace not only to forget, but to forgive. May God give is the strength and determination to strain forward for that which lies before us.