Old Baggage

As we say goodbye to another year, and prepare to welcome a new one, I cannot help but feel a little melancholy. For each tick of the clock, we also put miles behind us and suddenly we realize that for many of us there are more miles behind, than in front of us. One must only look at the number of family and friends we have buried to remind us of our own mortality. Personally, I have seen too many taken in the prime of life, and it teaches us to live every day to its fullest and give thanks to our Creator for granting another day, and hopefully another year.

This time each year we tend to look forward, anticipating just what the New Year will bring. In reality, we must look backwards before looking ahead. Have you ever watched someone dragging an old suitcase with miles of wear through an airport or hotel lobby? Just as an old suitcase can break open and spill all of its contents, old baggage in our lives can break open and wreck the lives of everyone around us. Are you carrying any old baggage into the year ahead?

Life can be full of regrets, and sometimes one incident, or many combined, can lead to guilt that will be with us our entire lives. Any moment could be the last time ourselves or someone close to us will take that last breath. Are you willing to let words spoken in anger rob you of the opportunity to see loved ones the last time. The next time the phone rings or you hear a knock on the door, it very well could be letting you know a father, mother, grandparent, husband, wife, sister, brother, or even your child has left this earth. Do you want there to be words unspoken? Is there any amount of pride worth living and wishing you had one more chance to say please forgive me, or I forgive you and I love you.

As one who personally has struggled with and watched others who are un-willing to forgive, I can tell you it can eat you alive, and can rob you of everything. It will make you and everyone around you miserable, and if not dealt with can leave you full of regrets and ultimately leave you alone. No matter how justified you may feel you are, anger will consume you, and what will you do when nobody, even your closest family has no desire to be around you?

In Ephesians Chapter 4 and verse 26, we are instructed to “not let the sun go down on your wrath.” Then in verse 32, the writer tells us “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Not only can anger destroy everything in our path here on earth it can also destroy our relationship with our Heavenly Father. Is there anything worth, as it says a couple of verses prior, quenching the Holy Spirit in your life.

While the Bible tells us not to let the sun go down, will you join me and not let another year go down with issues of wrath and un-forgiveness in our lives? Walk into the New Year knowing that all is right in your life and the relationship with other members of your family, friends, and community. Be the bigger person, whether you are in the wrong or not. Just remember that over two thousand years ago a man, who had done no wrong, hung on a cross, so we could all be forgiven. Even in his dying words, he taught us the power of forgiveness as he prayed, “Father forgive them”. Is swallowing a little pride too much to ask? What if Jesus had let pride get in the way of his destiny, then where would any of us be.

As the New Year fast approaches, will you leave the old baggage behind you or will you carry it with you? There are choices to make, you can start a year without all of the old baggage, or you can keep accumulating baggage that gets heavier with the passage of each day and year, eventually becoming too heavy to carry, and leave you broken and desolate. On the other hand, you can settle old scores and start a New Year standing straight up without the baggage from the past. Celebrate the New Year knowing all is well in your relationships here on earth and the relationship with your Father in heaven.