Sing A New Song!

First of all, I want to wish each and every one of you a very Happy New Year!

As we enter 2023, many of us have made various resolutions and promises for the new year. For the sake of transparency, I will be the first one to confess that I have broken many of these types of personal contracts that I have made with myself (and sometimes even to God). When I made those resolutions, I had every intent of doing what I said that I would do, but then, a phenomenon that I refer to as "decay" sets in. Many of you know how this works: the first week, you're fired up and full of vim and vigor. You start out with a full head of steam and stay on track, whether it's going to the gym, not drinking, no more cussing, getting to work on time, etc. Then, by week two, life starts "getting in the way". You oversleep and it throws off your morning routine, you end up working late and are too tired to work out, coworkers and the general public catch you on a day when you ran out of coffee and you were already "in a mood", or you had such a lousy day that you forget your promise and pour yourself a drink.

By week three, you feel so guilty for not keeping your word to yourself (and possibly to God) that you have all but given up trying. In any case, you now feel betrayed by your own nature and start beating yourself up: "What's wrong with me? Why can't I stay on track? Why can't I ever finish anything that I start? Why do I feel like such a failure? I give up! This stuff NEVER works for me!" Once that negative self-talk enters the conversation, your resolve has been destroyed and you revert back to your old habits. How close am I in my description?

My answer to this cycle of personal defeat is a simple one that will make some of you laugh. In Psalm 96, the Bible tells us to, "Sing The Lord A New Song". The premise is that the old songs and old routines won't get us to the spiritual place that we need to be in our walk with God. After the Philistines returned the Ark (of The Covenant) to Israel, David erroneously tried to bring it to the Temple by hauling it on a cart. Since they had not been instructed on how to carry it properly, the Ark tipped and Uzzah, just a good dude, trying to help out, was struck down when he attempted to prop it up and keep it from falling. However, he was not authorized to handle the Ark, so he was killed. David, in his anger, sent the Ark to the house of Obed-Edom, who ended up being blessed by having the Ark in his household. David then goes to retrieve the Ark, but this time he has the Priests and Levites bring the poles that were to be inserted in each side so that they carried it on their shoulders (Ex 25: 10-15). After taking 5 steps, David is filled with the spirit and begins dancing and singing Psalm 96. Therefore we need to try something new, or do something different.

Albert Einstein, arguably one of the most intelligent human beings who has ever lived, stated that "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing the same way and expecting different results". As a personal example, my last year of teaching, I had first hour Prep for the whole year. That means that I had no students for the first hour of school because that was my plan time. As a result, I would come to work later than most of the staff. While getting my admin license, I had to drive to Indianapolis every Saturday for classes. I had to be there at 8am. Since I live in Northwest Indiana, INDY is an hour ahead. I also needed 2 to 2.5 hours of drive time to get there, so I had to leave my house at 5:30am every Saturday. That means that I had to get up at 4:30am every Saturday so that I could also do my devotions. That was a rough 18 months.

When I became an administrator, I lost that 1st Hour Prep perk and had to be at school BEFORE everyone else, which was a "new song" for me. I really struggled with getting up 60 minutes earlier than I had ever had to before. My old routine just didn't cut it. Instead of my usual 5 minute drive, I now had a 30 minute commute, AND I still needed 30 minutes for devotions every morning with Dawn. I initially cut out devotions, but that lasted about a week, and I felt the difference. Everything felt out of whack, and I didn't feel like myself. The answer was that I had to get up 90 minutes earlier, which also meant that I had to go to bed 90 minutes earlier. I also had to change what I did when I got up. Rather than sit with a cup of coffee for 15 minutes in the name of "waking up", I had to get up, hit the shower, get dressed, and then get my coffee. In essence, I had to "Sing A New Song". The discomfort that these adjustments cost me have helped my career as an administrator. After almost 10 years of doing this routine, it's now second nature. Thank God for the time of preparation during my commute to INDY! That struggle prepared me for what was to come and provided me with a roadmap to success.

What's your point Pastor? I'm glad that you asked! My point is this: If you want to get different results, you need to develop a different process. You can't continue to do what you've been doing and still expect to see changes in your life. In essence: "Sing A New Song! Let me ask you, my friend, what new song do you need to sing? Pray and ask God for guidance. He will respond and show up! In the words of an old hymn: "Ask the Savior to help you, Comfort, strengthen and keep you; He is willing to aid you, He will carry you through." God Bless You All! Thank You for your prayers, presence and support! Happy New Year!