[Faith-talk] Good Night Message for Wednesday, January 2, 2013

[Paul]

Hello and good morning, afternoon or evening wherever in this world you happen to live.  I hope and pray that, by God's matchless grace and His providential care, that we in North America had a good day today, and that you in other lands are having a good Thursday.

Our article for today is short, but nonetheless is a very good one.  Published a number of years ago by the American Tract Society, it was written by Henry G. Perry and is simply entitled "The New Year," rendered as follows:

As we approach the new year, it may be well to consider what desires are uppermost in our hearts and minds.

Our friends will very likely send us the usual greetings for a happy and prosperous new year and the wish that the world's good will be our portion.

Ponder this for a moment, and recall that God gave to King Solomon all of the heart that the world could wish for; yet, it brought vanity and vexation of spirit.

It is our privilege to receive with glad and thankful hearts the gifts of God's providence and to enjoy them without anxious thoughts for them.  But unless we lift our hearts upward from the material gifts to the gifts of God, we will find that this also is vanity.

The greatest gift to all mankind was God's gift of His Son, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

This precious gift is ours for the acceptance, and with Christ Jesus as our Savior, we can truly look to the coming year with peace of heart, confidence, and assurance.

However, the Lord Jesus Christ, according to the Bible, made it very clear when He said, "No man cometh unto the Father (God) but by Me" (John 14:6).

Start the new year with that inward assurance that can be yours as you believe in Christ, the Son of God, as your Savior and Lord.

And there you have Brother Henry's article.  Perhaps it should have been posted on or very near New Year's Eve, but as the old saying says, "Better late than never."

Before I close this good night message, I would be remiss if I didn't thank the countless people who have contributed in ways both small and great to the quote collection over these past two years, whether one sent just one quote or many.  Your messages really hit home with me, and I pray that they also did for others.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, throughout this night or day and especially in these last days in which we live.  Your friend and brother in Christ, Paul