With Every Setting Sun…

Sunrise, Porthpean, Cornwall, Oct 2018

Happy New Year, dear Readers!

So here we are! Jan 2nd, 2020.

A new month. A new year. A new decade!

I don’t know about you, but I always find New Year a bit strange. Whether it’s a fireworks display, a party, or even just a quiet night in, watching Jules Holland on TV, inevitably, the big moment comes…

The countdown… For those of us in the UK, the arrival of the New Year is usually marked by the familiar sound of Big Ben chiming – and with each resounding BONG, we find ourselves joining in the chant – “ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one….”

And then, with great gusto, we’re off! Pulling those strings on our party-poppers and shouting HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And to the sound of Auld Lang Syne, off we go, kissing and hugging everyone – & I mean EVERYONE – (even people we hardly know) and wishing them a Happy New Year.

And there’s that weird sense of anticipation… In one moment, in a single second, we’ve collectively crossed over a threshold. There are so many analogies, aren’t there? A blank page. A new chapter. A brand new book! A fresh start. A clean slate. Ring out the old, ring in the new.

Resolutions are made.

This is the year I’m going to: ______________________ (you fill in the blank!)

And there’s that feeling, isn’t there? Things really ought to be different. Yesterday is gone. A line is firmly drawn under last year. Now, things can only get better.

And then quick as a flash, magazines start to appear, with their New Year slogans:

• New Year, New Start!

• Ten steps to a brand new you!

• New Year Detox – A Diet you can finally stick to!

It sounds good, doesn’t it? Inspiring. But…deep down inside, there’s this underlying sense of reality. Nothing significant has actually changed. You look in the mirror. Same face. Same need to face the day. The washing up needs doing. That old pile of ironing…yep. It’s still there.

Special as it is, Jan 1st is just another day. You don’t wake up any different. In reality, you’re just the same old you.

And by about January 17th, usually once you’ve broken your resolve and stuffed your face with the remnants of a box of chocolates you forgot you had, it can all feel like a bit of a let-down. It’s just the same old, same old.

BUT, dear Reader Friends, there is good news!

It beautifully dawned on me yesterday whilst I was driving. I had my worship playlist on in the car. And all of a sudden as I was pondering what the New Year might have in store…I heard these words:

Your mercies are new, over and over,

Your mercies are new, over and over,

As surely as the morning comes, You’re faithful!

I’ll sing of Your love, over and over,

I’ll sing of Your love, over and over,

I’ll sing with every setting sun,

You’re faithful!

(Over and Over, by Chris McClarney, from the 2018 album, ‘Breakthrough’)

Sunset over Lake Garda, August, 2019

This is what the word of God says:

The steadfast love of the Lord NEVER CEASES,

His mercies NEVER COME TO AN END

They are NEW EVERY MORNING,

Great is Thy Faithfulness!

Lamentations 3:23

With the dawning of every day, regardless of whether it’s 1st January, or 25th April, or 7th September…each and every day that I live and breathe, I’m given a fresh start. A gift! A brand new day, with new mercies to be found. Not yesterday’s leftovers. Nope. God’s mercies are new every morning. Oh sweet truth!

I might start the new year with good intentions…only to fail. But my God, He never fails. He never grows weary. His steadfast love never ceases. His mercies don’t run out of puff. They are always fresh, always new. Never failing, never ceasing. And with every setting sun, if I’m intentional enough to count my blessings, I’ll be able to say, “Great is Thy faithfulness!”

Praise God for this beautiful truth!

Happy New Day!