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Will you [Did you] wake up on January 1, 2012 and say to God: “I don’t need to read your Word or pray or listen to your voice today. I am competent on my own. I can keep my New Years' resolutions all by myself, thank you very much.”?

Of course not!  We would never dare say these frightfully arrogant words.

But if we neglect God’s Word and prayer, we are saying with our hearts and actions: “I can do it all by myself.”

Jesus has a different perspective: “Apart from me you can do nothing.” He says in John 15:5.

We can’t start a new diet, stick to our budget, or kick that bad habit without Him. None of these things—no matter how hard we work at them—will have any “eternal value or…produce spiritual fruit” without God (ESV Study Bible).

To bear fruit, we must sit at Jesus' feet and listen to his teaching (Luke 10:38-42).

We must renounce our self-sufficiency.

We must repent from our arrogant independence.

We must come to the God of mercy who is eager to forgive.

And we must sit.

When we sit at Jesus’ feet, we are saying: “I need you! I can’t obey you without your help. I can’t serve you in my own strength. I can’t walk in a manner worthy of the gospel by myself. I need your grace.”

And you know what? He will give it! God doesn't correct our self-sufficiency to push us away. He wants us to draw near to sit and listen. He wants to speak to us, to teach us, to give us grace to bear fruit.

So let’s say—with our words, our hearts, and our actions—I need you, Lord, today and every day this year!

Sitting in the New Year

by Carolyn Mahaney