Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

To the Editor:
A new year causes people to re-examine themselves and their priorities. Most have regrets about what they did or didn’t do. We can’t alter our past but we can put our past on the alter and give Jesus control of our lives and change our future. We need to learn from the past but not stay in the past. Bill Vaughn said, “An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.” Unless people change and revival comes I have pessimism about the new year. People resolve every New Year’s to become a better person. There’s only one way to become better and that’s to put our trust in and surrender our lives to Jesus. Jesus helps us become a better person by changing our priorities and improving our thoughts and attitudes. Once Jesus is our Savior and Lord the Holy Spirit helps us to have the right desires and attitudes called the fruit of the Spirit. These by-products of living for Jesus and not self are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control.
Once Jesus has forgiven us of a lifetime of sin, Jesus requires and helps us forgive others who have hurt us. So the most important thing to do in the new year is get forgiveness from Jesus and give forgiveness to others. Unforgiveness is at an all time high with all the division, road rage and people unfriending those on Facebook who disagree with them. Unforgiveness is having hate, resentment, bitterness or a unfriendly feeling or attitude toward someone you feel has wronged you. Having hate and bitterness is like taking poison and expecting others to die from it. The person may have done evil, terrible things to you. You may think you have the right to hold a grudge and hate that person. But if you want God to bless you and answer your prayers you must forgive.
A former president correctly said, “Others may hate you but those that hate you don’t win unless you hate them back and then you destroy yourself.” The Bible says, “Don’t be overcome with evil but overcome evil with good.” The only way evil can overcome Christians is if they return evil for evil. If someone insults, curses or lies about you, you aren’t overcome. You are overcome if you insult, curse or lie about them right back. Then the unkind person has become your role model and has changed you for the worst. As the song from the “Frozen” movie said, “Let it go!”
In Matthew 18 God promises great pain and suffering to those who won’t forgive. Some cancers, arthritis and other physical and mental illnesses have been linked to unforgiveness. Prisons are full of criminals who refuse to forgive, mostly their fathers. In the Bible Job forgave and God gave him double. Joseph forgave his brothers and God turned his heart to joy and changed all the bad that people had done to him to work for his good and he helped millions survive a seven-year famine. So do yourself a favor and let go of the selfishness and hate you had in 2022, and give Jesus your time, mind and trust in 2023! So be ready for the return of Jesus by getting forgiveness from Jesus and forgiving others and attending church as the Bible says to do at every opportunity in 2023. This year is a high watch time for the rapture. Israel is ready to build the third temple. In 2023 we will see more wars, earthquakes and tidal waves as the the Bible predicted. So don’t live on the coast. We will see more signs in the heavens than ever before. People will be more scared than ever. For example, strange energy waves will hit the earth beginning January 5, 2023 and we don’t know the effect it will have. Whatever happens Jesus is the best comfort in changing times and the only way to be ready for heaven and be free in 2023!

D.D. Nave
Elizabethton