Looking back

At this time of year, many of us like to take time out to consider the year that is coming to a close and get ready for the year ahead. I often sit down with a list of things I am doing, or am connected with, and spend time asking God if any of them need to be brought to a close at the end of the year.

As I contemplated this on Sunday, in preparation for a group I was leading that evening, I was thinking along the lines of my personal growth, well-being, habits, and the revelation I have had this year, as well as the activities and groups I am involved in, as I started to ask these questions:

What do I want to leave in 2023?

What do I want to take forward into 2024?

It is good practice to reflect, to take stock. Contemplative Christian practices introduce the idea of a daily “examen” prayer where we reflect on the day as it ends. This gives us the opportunity to keep “short accounts” with God and others, putting right anything that needs sorting out before we go to sleep, a practice endorsed by Ephesians 4:26-27

In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.

Daily reflection is a healthy practice that enables us to discard the burdens, the wounds and failings of the day, receiving healing, forgiveness, and restoration from God, removing those access points that it could give the enemy; removing the potential for bitterness and other negativity to build up and fester in our inner being. Like cleansing a wound quickly so as to stop any potential infection.

In the ‘sophistication’ of our lives in Christendom in the 21st century, I think it is easy to imagine that the simple disciplines of confession and repentance, of asking for forgiveness and choosing to forgive others are somehow ‘old-fashioned’. In reality, they are never more needed. This practice is even woven into the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, some of which, when asking for daily bread, makes sense at the beginning of the day, but some of which makes total sense as the day draws to a close. Matthew 6:12-13 instructs us to pray …

… forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

If I don’t sit with Jesus and allow him to speak into my day, how it really was from his perspective, I can end up with all sorts of warped viewpoints and so part of that reflection is about allowing him to frame how my day went. This saves me from any tendency to exaggerate, to beat myself up, to excuse and blame, to wallow in self pity, to minimise sin, or any one of a number of ditches that I could potentially fall into. I want his perspective because as he reminds us in Isaiah 55:8-9:

… my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

I don’t want to be deceived, I don’t want to give the enemy access to my life and I don’t want to allow anything to fester unnecessarily. I need to hear the truth from him. It is a source of life. Psalm 51:6 teaches us:

Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in secret You will make wisdom known to me.

As I sit with God daily, but also as 2023 draws to a close, contemplating life in the context of the whole year, I need his wisdom for the year ahead. We all do. These are turbulent times and we need the anchor of his hope, the solid ground of his words to give us stability. Not just the wisdom of knowing what to do in the year ahead, but the wisdom of his perspective on the year which it would be easy to frame through my feelings. I want truth to frame my life.

However, in the last week I have been reminded again and again of joy. It seems that the word “JOY” is everywhere in the shops, on the cards I have received, in conversations and advent readings. Maybe it is just that the third week of advent traditionally looks at the theme of joy, but I think it is more than that. We need strength for the times ahead and Nehemiah 8:10, a familiar verse for me, tells us

Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

As I read my Bible this morning and prayed, I was reminded of the instruction in Philippians 4:4

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

And so I found myself listing all the things I could think of that were a source of rejoicing today, and in particular what I was rejoicing in, in relation to God and who he is.

As I sit this evening, this verse has come back to me. It is easy in our taking stock of the year, to get caught up in the negative. I have, I confess, found myself saying that I am ready for a new year. But this year is not over yet. 2023 for many has been a turbulent year and in our world there is much that causes us to get on our knees. However, with 11 days left to go, I will not wish this year away because there has actually been much to celebrate.

This has been the thought that prompted me to write this. As you take stock, looking back over the year, considering the year ahead, absolutely talk to God about things to leave in 2023, and things that he wants to develop, to grow in 2024. Absolutely look forward in anticipation. But maybe good questions to ask him, especially if you year has been difficult in parts, is:

Father, what are you rejoicing over as 2023 comes to a close?

As I look back on the year, what can I celebrate?

It is Christmas, a time to celebrate that Jesus is always good news, and we can always, always rejoice in him, so let’s remember to rejoice in our taking stock. Philippians 4:8 exhorts us to:

Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.