Good Riddance 2011

In case you did not hear, today is "Good Riddance 2011 Day." This is the 5th year for Good Riddance Day and it provides residents and tourists in New York City a chance to make way for the new year by destroying their bad memories and regrets from 2011. Participants can stop by the location in Times Square to shred or smash things they would rather leave behind in 2011. "All you need to do is write out, or bring in, whatever it is you would like to forget, and the Times Square Alliance will take care of it." "Anything you write on a piece of paper goes into this shredder and actually everything gets recycled so eventually your ex-boyfriend will turn into a paper cup or toilet paper, says Lori Raimondo of the Times Square Alliance. "And if it is a physical object wee have this here so if you want to destroy that cell phone or chairs that's been so uncomfortable, you can come here and take this mallet. We'll give you safety goggles and you just pummel it." The most creative person to say good riddance will win an Apple iPad.

As I listened to this story on TV news this morning, I thought about how God has so much more to offer people than simply smashing a bad experience from 2011. God tells us in His word that He offers us the opportunity for anyone to become a new creation through faith in Jesus Christ, If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come (2 Corinthians 5:17). This is so much more profound than simply shredding a piece of paper, it involves starting a new life in relationship with our Creator! It involves experiencing the forgiveness of our sins, freedom from guilt and shame, and the promise of eternal life.

For the believer, God is also the God of new beginnings. Paul tells believers in Philippians 3:13, Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to sin the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. This past year might have been a year of difficulty, disappointment, or despair, but God has promised that He will never leave you or forsake you, and He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It is always good to re-evaluate your life and stake stock of where you are as you enter a new year. And that may include leaving behind some things in 2011. But whether 2011 was a good or bad year, God offers so much more than a shredder and a sledge hammer. May God bless you throughout this coming year.

Blessings,

Dr. Paul