New Year’s Day is one of my favorite holidays, perhaps second only to Christmas. There is something invigorating (and I would argue Christian) about celebrating the turning of a new year. With a new year, there is a sense of newness, of things beginning again, of fresh starts and new opportunities. It is a time when the power and presence of grace is strongly felt.
The new year is a tangible reminder of God’s grace. It’s true and wonderful that God’s grace is available and present all through the year - as it says in Lamentations 3: “…his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning…” Yet, too often, I do not remember that this grace is always available. I need reminders that God has forgiven my sins, that the Holy Spirit dwells within me, and that I am cloaked in the righteousness of Christ. New Year’s Day is such a reminder. It marks the end of one era and the beginning of another. The year 2023 is over - it’s history! We are no longer bound by it or part of it. With the start of 2024 we have been given the opportunity to begin again. The sins, mistakes, and regrets of the past year have no power over us. God reminds us that through His grace we can start over and lean freshly into the work of pursuing love, truth, and beauty. Such a reminder should fill us with a renewed sense of life, energy, and purpose. The New Year can be an exciting time!
At the same time, the days before and after New Year’s Day can also be a sad, melancholy time. After I returned home from visiting family, I began to reflect on the year, and I couldn’t shake a feeling of fragility. I remembered well the joys of the year: a wedding; trips to see friends; travel with our Youth Group; time spent with friends and family; school and small group lessons that went well; the light and joys of spring, summer, and fall. But I also remembered goals and hopes that were unmet and mistakes that were made. Even after the euphoria of New Year’s Day, there are reminders that things are not as they should be. Christmas decorations are put away, friends and family are missed, and the grind and troubles of work begin again. Moreover, the weather is cold, the days are short and dark, and the earth and trees look lifeless - winter’s reign is heavy. As I look towards the days ahead, uncertainty, doubt, and, even at times, fear can start to grip my heart. Perhaps you have had similar thoughts at this time of the year?
Yet when I observe the rhythms of winter, God brings to my attention an amazing sign of His faithfulness. In the days shortly before Christmas (at least in the northern hemisphere), darkness grows to its greatest length of the year, culminating in the winter solstice - the shortest daylight of the year. The leaves have fallen, the nights are long and dark, and the air grows cold and harsh. But then, something beautiful happens - though it is often easy to miss in the dark days of winter - after the winter solstice, the days grow longer. What I find wonderful about this is that, because the days are growing longer, we have certainty that spring will return! The sun will grow in strength, cold will give way to warmth, and the earth, trees, and animals will give birth to new life. Winter will not last forever.
There is an interesting (and I would argue intentional) comparison that can be made between the winter solstice and the resurrection of Christ. (Bear with me a moment.) If we compare the rhythms of the year to the turning of the seasons, Christ’s victory over death in the resurrection is like the winter solstice. Just as the lengthening daylight promises us that spring and summer will return, so too does the fact that Jesus is risen from the dead give us the promise that death is defeated. Christ will return, and one day sin, suffering, and death will be no more. Christ’s resurrection is a promise that evil and death does not win!
Nevertheless, death, sin, and evil are still with us despite Christ’s resurrection. We are living in the “winter” of cosmic time that stretches back to creation. The “days” are cold, dark, and death seems to surround us - life can be hard to find. When the death of a loved one occurs or I hear news of death that affects those I love, I often reflect on and utter the old medieval Latin phrase media vita morte sumus: “In the midst of life, we are in death.” But it is equally true that media morte vita sumus: “In the midst of death, we are in life.” 2023 was not only a year of death and sorrow, but it was also a year of birth and joy. There have been many times, even this past year, when news of death was followed by news of a birth. Death does not have the last word. God’s love overpowers the darkness, and in Christ, our sins no longer condemn us - they are washed away! Even despite the world being broken, God’s grace means that creation is filled with wonder and beauty.
So let this be an encouragement to you as we go into a new year. It’s true that we are in winter, both for this current season and the scheme of cosmic time that stretches back to creation. The days are dark, cold, and often feel lifeless. Media vita morte sumus. But no matter how cold it may get, no matter how bitter the winter may be, the lengthening days promise us that spring is on its way. Media morte vita sumus. Death is defeated. Christ reigns supreme, and He is coming again! We can go into this new year trusting in the grace given to us by God that our sins have no power over us. We can start again and lean freshly into extending God’s grace and love to ourselves and others. And when sin and death rear their ugly heads at us, we can take heart that Christ is victorious over death, that “the days are growing longer.” One day, not only spring, but the new heavens and the new earth will arrive. Good will triumph over evil; life will triumph over death.
