“That’s a Wrap”! Our language is changing so frequently these days. I am not always clear if phrases carry the same meaning.
In the not-so-distant past, “It’s a wrap’ were words meant to tell a camera crew that filming a scene for a movie or perhaps an online video was concluded..
Here I am borrowing the phrase to signal the closing days of 2022. Can you believe Christmas has come and gone! All that remains are the closing hours to New Year’s Eve.
Often we begin a New Year by looking ahead and bravely (foolishly?) making New Year’s Resolutions.
But I wonder if what we call resolutions are, in reality, daydreams destined to distract from our present situation. They merely promise momentary relief as we look to the future.
In this Vincentian Mindwalk I would like to use key insights of Cory Mansfield and Staff to put a wrap on 2022. Their words help me think more clearly and effectively about my future in 2023.
Before wrapping up 2022 …
They wrote a piece that caught my eye. “Looking Back for a Clearer View of the Future.
Their simple words suggest investing a bit of time in one’s self by reflecting on the following before putting a wrap on 2022.
- Celebrate your wins
- Learn from your missteps
- Remember God’s faithfulness
- Thank God for His goodness
They believe if you do, you will set yourself up “for a love filled, joy filled, peace filled, patience filled, kindness filled, goodness filled, faithfulness filled, gentleness filled, and self-controlled new year!”
At the very least…
“Reviewing our past year will help us to remember at least momentarily all that God has done and is doing.
Forgive me for stating the obvious, but time is moving forward, and it is not slowing down.
Time is our most precious commodity.
We have to take advantage of every moment God gives us.
Each moment we have is a gift from God.
These gifts turn into precious memories that can easily be forgotten unless we take the time to think about them and remember.
Jesus started us on the path of remembering when he said, “Do this in memory of me!”
Did we remember to…
Celebrate our wins
Parents remember and celebrate the major achievements of their children. They genuinely rejoice with the children. They also know that these celebrations encourage the child to aim higher.
Learn from our missteps
Loving parents take the time to help a child learn from their mistakes. When a child learns from mistakes they turn a mistake into an opportunity for growth.
Remember God’s faithfulness
On the night before he died, Jesus washed not just the feet of the apostles! He also washed our feet. Then Jesus asked us to remember… and “do this in memory of me
Thank God for His goodness
When we remember God asks us to “pay it forward” we set ourselves up for
“a love filled, joy filled, peace filled, patience filled, kindness filled, goodness filled, faithfulness filled, gentleness filled, and self-controlled new year!”
Nobody, not even God, can do this for us!
They conclude with
“So let me encourage you to take the time these next few days to review this past year and celebrate all that God has done and is doing in your life and the life of your church. I hope that by remembering God’s goodness and faithfulness, you will have the confidence and the faith to run with endurance the race that God has set before you (Hebrews 12:1).”
Interesting image – a solid yellow line – usually means, “Don’t cross over!”
Reflecting on the year gone by is productive, but we can’t cross that line and go back. Sports fans love to relive the glory days of prior years; some family members seek comfort in “how things used to be” since their present/future might seem less promising; some Catholics long for “the good old days” that never existed for so many.
The new year is not promised yet we still plan. Thank God for instilling in us the ability to look ahead, to map out a course, whether we’re able to follow it or not. While faith and love are great instruments to have in our pocket, hope gets us moving out the door to start anew each day.
Father John, indeed best to look back as to what was and what can be in the future. 2022, despite all of the woes caused by the post pandemic period that was tough in 2020 and 2021, it was a good year and much accomplished in my book. What I found was a closer connection with God than ever before with more visits to parish church before starting the work day Jnd spending time with the Lord. In doing so, I was regularly looking back at the day past, and looking ahead. Hope your year ahead is good as well!