A New Sunrise

Lamentations 3:19-23 (ESV)

19 Remember my affliction and my wanderings,    the wormwood and the gall!20 My soul continually remembers it    and is bowed down within me.21 But this I call to mind,    and therefore I have hope:

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;[a]    his mercies never come to an end;23 they are new every morning;    great is your faithfulness.

November, the month of gratitude. For us Puerto Ricans, it means Christmas has begun. For some it’s a time for togetherness and family, but sometimes, the last months of the year can remind us of all the things we dreamed we’d do and never did. Some of us lament and regret the hardships of the past year. Exhaustion is real. Part of being human is feeling divided between what is and what isn’t, what I wanted and what I got.

               There’s a story in the Bible that narrates a very important decision a great multitude made approximately 2000 years ago: Jesus or Barrabas? The debate between the eternal and the temporary, light vs darkness, and obedience vs violence. Which of these reigned in our 2023?

               The answer to this question, whether you believe it or not, doesn’t define you; for Christ offered grace in the place of judgement, available to everyone who wants to receive it. There is a way to leave the past where it belongs. I’m not saying we will forget, only that we can keep going.

Luke 1:78-79 (ESV) says:

78 because of the tender mercy of our God,    whereby the sunrise shall visit us[a] from on high79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,    to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Jesus, the true light, capable of lighting our way into peace. The enemy will disguise himself as an angel of light, but “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:5 ESV). Do you want this light? All you have to do is believe. Take this new year as an opportunity to choose the best, that which no one can take away from you.