I sat bewildered as tickling merriment
Mellowed into mundane reality
“How could last year leave me this way?
Where is that bursting joy I knew yesterday?
Where is that brimming hope that ushered in
A brand New Year? Where is all I worked for
Where went all my desires and dreams?
Where is the change new season promised?
“I am here with you,” says Restoration
“Not in the past that is lost, not in a future
Yet to come; I am here, I am now
I am in the dawn that stirs you up
I am in the sun that makes you shine
And in the darkness that hides you.
I am home with you, on the way with you
When you go up or down, as you go in and out
I am that hope within that says, ‘Rise and Shine!
Take the day, take your place, take your gifts
And do with them as you please.’”

Food for Thought: If the past year was tough for you, the New Year can be great. And if the past one was good for you, the new one can be better. Looking forward for restoration is not deception. It is not setting up yourself for failure like some allude. Optimism is giving yourself a reason to get up and go over and above what you did last year. Without hope, men surrender and perish irrespective of opportunities. Hope is a fuel that supplies needed energy that keeps us moving forward. It takes nothing away from you. If anything costs you, it is being pessimistic. What is life without hope? Anticipation says, “This might not be the best but I am grateful and hopeful for better.” Restoration is not a stash of goodies waiting on a roadside that you happen upon. It is in everyday you wake up, every dream in your heart, and every faith you invest to see your dreams come true. Embrace each day with hope, it is an essential key for progress.

Scripture: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. 1 Peter 1: 3.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for preserving my life, and for giving me hope to face each day as it comes, knowing that Your faithfulness will see me through: thank You Lord, amen.