A New Year

A new year always looks so fresh and clean. An empty slate to be written on as the days go by. What will happen? What plans will we make? What issues will we confront? What dreams will we accomplish? It has a lot of questions marks and always many surprises. When we are young, it is exciting to explore new adventures and further our careers. As we age, it becomes more hope for healing of illnesses and avoiding falls and accidents. In between, we are busy with raising a family and making friends.

And then there are the perennial new year resolutions that most often go by the wayside. During this Jubilee Year of Mercy perhaps we can consider a resolution of practicing mercy in all our actions. When we are tempted to give an angry retort, when we feel resentful of another’s response, when we uncover old prejudices, when we want to hang on to grudges, when we see injustices, when others ignore us, may we dig deep for mercy and forgiveness. Perhaps we could keep a journal and enter a time each day when we consciously did something that showed mercy. We will have plenty of opportunities in our imperfect, wounded world. May 2016 be a year we make every effort to be more merciful. 

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