Nothing New for Me

First Monday of the new year. I expected fanfare, but didn’t see any. I thought my newly sought enlightenment had been so profound that the clouds would part and angels would sing.
Nothing. All I got was Monday morning traffic and a cold January wind.
How about you? If you made New Year’s Resolutions, are you still holding firm? I gave up on resolutions long ago. Instead, I set goals. Sometimes they’re the same goals every year. You know the ones: be kinder to those around me, practice patience, and drop a few pounds. I struggled, wondering what I could add to my list of goals.
But this year I decided to take a different approach. I’m not looking for anything “new”, I am looking for “fresh”. I don’t need a new look to those around me. I know who they are—my office mates, my neighbors, and even the drivers on the way to work are all the same. But God, give me a fresh look. Let me see them as you see them. Give me fresh eyes—your eyes.
Last year was an incredible year of growth for me. Probably nothing that would impress the average onlooker, but my relationship with God took a new turn. I experienced a trust and purpose with God that felt deeper, more encompassing.
I don’t want New, I want more of what I had in 2015, I want Fresh.
My guess is you know what you need, too. Maybe you don’t need to ask for new, either. I pray that God opens your heart to what’s already around you. Get a fresh look. You may be better for it.
What has been will be again,
    what has been done will be done again;
    there is nothing new under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9 NIV)