January, 2000

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.”

We have started the first month of the new year. But not only the new year, but also the new century and the new millennium. This is going to present all kinds of problems that we hadn’t anticipated. How do we date our checks and our documents -- 1/5/00 or 1/5/2000? And what do we call this year? I tell people I was born in forty-six. We talk of the 60’s and the 90’s, but what do we call this decade -- the oughts? I remember how funny it sounded when my older relatives talked about someone being born in “ought eight.” Now it’s going to seem normal. And I remember how ancient I thought my grandmother was since she was born in 1896, in the previous century. Now all three of my grandchildren will carry that stigma with them. Emily was born in 1995, Jonathan in 1996, and Caleb in 1999. Their grandchildren will think of them as I thought of my own grandmother!

As we look forward to this new beginning of the year and the century and the millennium, we should think of what the future may hold. What are we going to do with our lives for the remaining decades of our time here on earth? Are we going to use our time wisely and make a difference, or will we squander this fresh century that has been given to us? I know you might think it’s just another year. But there seems to be something special when all the numbers turn over to zeros. Remember when you were a child and your Dad pointed out to you how the car’s odometer was flipping over to the next thousand? That’s what the calendar just did. It flipped over to the next thousand. Even though we may reasonably expect this year to be a lot like last year, it feels different. There’s something mystical about a year with all zeros after it. It speaks of a new beginning, a new era.

So even though I made New Year’s Resolutions in the past, this year I think I’m going to make new life commitments. I want the remainder of my life to count for God’s kingdom. I want to grow spiritually into a new realm of faith and dedication. I want these years of this new century and millennium to have an effect on others. In the previous century, we asked the question What Would Jesus Do? Maybe in this new century, we need to ask What Does God Want Me to Do!

Dave