Saturday, January 1, 2011

Happy New Year

In thinking about 2010, my "hymn of the year" comes to mind. Much of "How Firm a Foundation" has applied to my life in the past year, but specifically this week I was humming these verses:

"When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
For I will be with thee thy troubles to bless
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace, all-sufficient, shall be thy supply.
The flames shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine."

Dross is defined as:

impurity: worthless or dangerous material that should be removed; "there were impurities in the water"
slag: the scum formed by oxidation at the surface of molten metals

This year has been defined by flames consuming "scum". As a result...we are being refined. Also as a result... I am beyond ecstatic to see 2010 come to an end. In fact, all month I had an urge to burn something. Every time someone said, "I can't believe 2010 is almost over!" I thought, "Let it burn."

So on New Year's Eve in an inspired moment I took a lighter outside with my 2010 calendar (it would cause less damage than some of the other things I considered burning).
When S. came home to find me in the backyard in a burning ceremony...no lost love for the past year...he laughed and cheered.
At midnight, we sighed relief.

Happy New Year!

2 comments:

  1. Great idea! You should have invited me over to burn 2010 with you.

    :) :) :)

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  2. I nearly shouted "YES! I SURVIVED!" when 2010 was FINALLY over. But, I was with a group of folks I don't know all that well, so I opted to keep my celebration inside. Burning the calendar sounds like a brilliant idea. :)

    Love the hymn verses you posted. Thanks for sharing!

    Looking forward to all God does in 2011... praying it is a year of answers, but knowing that the Lord will be faithful no matter what.

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