Richard Carlson opened an old Bible inherited from his grandmother, Hildur Carlson. As he flipped through it, two decorative crosses fell from its pages onto the floor. One celebrated the message of Christmas and was decorated with green holly and red berries. It bore the words: “Glory to God in the Highest.” The other featured the Lily of the Valley flower and the words of John 11:25: “I am the resurrection and the life.”

Also within the pages was a Bible reading calendar with portions assigned for each day. At the top were the words: “Never miss a day. Be willing to obey every teaching you find; it is God speaking to you.”

As Richard continued thumbing through the large-print Bible, he found a five-cent coupon for Dial Soap. But he found something else. His grandmother had put a large X in the margin of every verse that especially spoke to her. There were lots of Xs.

But the most precious thing about the Bible were the words Richard’s mother had written in the flyleaf: “Hildur Carlson, born 1887 October 29 in Bjarke, Sweden…. Came to America 1903. Bristow, Nebraska. Saved (became a born-again Christian) at the New Years Wake in 1903. Her testimony is and has been, ‘The Lord is all the world to me—Praise the Lord!’”¹

Her greatest gift to her family was the record of the greatest gift she’d ever received—her new birth on New Year’s Day 1903.

In years to come, your greatest legacy will be your faith in Jesus Christ and the fresh start He has given you. It’s a story your children and grandchildren should know. He brings to our life a new and glorious morn! 

There’s a reason we celebrate Christmas, and then, exactly one week later, we celebrate New Year’s Day. It’s Christ who brings us the opportunity of getting a new start in life. Our new beginnings are based on His birth, death, and resurrection. Mary, Joseph, some lowly shepherds, and a few Wise Men’s lives were suddenly changed on Christmas morning. They understood that they were at the cradle of the long-awaited King of kings. They got a fresh start in life, and their every subsequent day was tinged with blessing, joy, and the assurance of eternal life.

How would you like to experience a new and glorious morn? Perhaps like Hildur Carlson, you need to be born again into God’s Kingdom through the grace of Jesus Christ. Or perhaps you need a renewed faith—a fresh start on your Christian experience.

Christmas and New Year’s Day remind us that Jesus Christ came to bring us redemption, grace, forgiveness, joy, and eternal life. The Baby Jesus brought a new beginning to us all. He wants you to awaken to a fresh start.

The Best Gift

Jesus came from heaven bearing in His arms the best gift for all humanity—Himself, His sinless life, His precious blood, and His powerful resurrection. I imagine all of heaven went silent as God the Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, rose from the throne, leaped from the portals of glory, and became a human through the miracle of the virgin birth. At that moment, He became both God and man. I suppose the angels were astonished into silence, the music ceased, the cherubim hid their eyes, the seraphim held their breath, and the endless hallelujahs of heaven skipped a beat.

But Jesus loved His creation—the whole world. And He loved you and had you in mind as He descended from the heights, entered the world through a virgin’s womb, and was wrapped in swaddling clothes and placed in a feeding trough, for no one in Bethlehem would loan Him their bed on the night of His birth.

Because of our sins and failures, God Himself became a man who spent 33 years living in absolute sinlessness, perfection, and righteousness. Then He offered Himself as a sacrifice for sin, like a spotless lamb. The Bible says, “He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:15).

You’ll never receive another gift that compares to the one Jesus brought you. It’s the best gift. It’s the gift of Himself.

The Best Blessings

When you receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, His best blessings come into your life. They come like a flood of grace. Ephesians 1:3 says, “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ” (NLT). The Bible also says, “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, and we have a priceless inheritance” (1 Peter 1:3-4, NLT).

If you visit Russia, you can buy nesting dolls in any souvenir store. They’re called Matryoshka dolls, and when you open the carved wooden doll, another is inside of it, and then another, and another. The largest known set features 51 figures. The largest doll is nearly two feet high, and the smallest one is a fraction of an inch. When you give a child a nesting doll, they find one gift after another—all contained in the same package.

Jesus Christ is a living gift, and from His life flows one blessing after another—access to God, eternal life, answered prayer, divine companionship, precious promises, unspeakable joy, indescribable peace, supernatural attitudes, fulfilling purpose, a global family, strength for daily pressures, peace at life’s close, protection, guidance, wisdom for the perplexities we face, and on and on and on.

Put it all together and you have the best life possible to enjoy. Major W. Ian Thomas said, “I know of nothing so utterly exciting as being a Christian, sharing the very Life of Jesus Christ on earth right here and now, being caught up with Him into the relentless, invincible purposes of the almighty God, and having available to us all the limitless resources of Deity for accomplishing those purposes. Can you imagine anything more exciting than that?”²

No, I can’t!

The Best Future

When we receive the best gift (Jesus Himself) and enjoy the best blessings (all He brings into our life), it leads to the best future. You can look ahead to the new year and all the years to come with anticipation. And beyond our years on earth, we have eternity. The Bible is full of information about that. God doesn’t want us to be doubtful about our everlasting home. He has promised that at the end of time, He’s going to create a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:1), dominated by a great and glorious city (Revelation 21:2). The throne of God will be there (Revelation 22:1), and we’ll be there too (John 14:3). The city will be bright (Revelation 22:5), like crystal (Revelation 21:11), with high walls and deep foundations (Revelation 21:12-14).

We will worship Him there, face to face (Revelation 22:4), and we’ll stay busy with meaningful activities and service (Revelation 22:3). Our bodies will be resurrected and glorified, like the perfect body of Jesus (Philippians 3:21). God will wipe every tear from our eyes (Revelation 21:4), and so shall we ever be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

Do you need the sure hope of a future like that?

Sometimes it’s a traumatic experience that awakens us to our need for a Savior. Other times, it’s the still, small voice of the Holy Spirit that flows into our heart with the sweetness of the season. But however and whenever God speaks to you, there’s no better time to awaken to a fresh start by giving your life to Jesus Christ.

Give your life to Jesus today. Because of Him, it’s a new and glorious morn!

Sources:

¹Richard P. Carlson, “Can You Follow the Trail of Faith,” rocketminer.com, August 9, 2019, https://www.rocketminer.com/opinion/columnists/can-you-follow-the-trail-of-faith/article_1b52288f-516c-505e-8d7a-84a8e9bf499d.html.

²Major W. Ian Thomas, The Indwelling Life of Christ (Colorado Springs: Multnomah Books, 2006), 7.