Praying that the New Person God Made Me will Bless Others in 2021

We can’t change the fact that we live in a sinful world full of suffering and problems, full of hate and injustice, full of pain and loss. But, there is something we can change. We can change our lives and the way we live. God inspired St. Paul to give a description of the new life we live. “14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:14-17)

In a sinful world we are made new by the love of Jesus who died for us. Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sins and to give us new hearts. Jesus rose to give eternal life to all who believe in Him. In the midst of a world of pain and disappointment, Jesus offers hope and joy. In a world where all face death, Jesus gives eternal life. We have a sure future. Our lives in this world are new! We can all live as the new people God made us to be! And . . . because Jesus has given us NEW LIFE, we can make a difference in this world.

To sum this up, the world around us may not change for the better, but personally, as a new child of God, I can make the world around me better. Jesus loved me, I can love others. Jesus forgave me, I can forgive others. Jesus made me new, and Jesus made my world better with his grace and salvation. I can make the sinful world around me a better place with the love God gave me. Or as Paul also wrote in 2 Corinthians, “3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-5) Because Jesus has comforted me, I can comfort others. As a person made new by Jesus, I can make 2021 better for those in my life.

The calendar year 2020 has been a tough one. Who knows what 2021 will bring. But, God has made me new in Jesus and I can bring God and his love to those in my life during 2021.