A Time for Reflection

As the old year draws to a close, it is natural for us to take stock of everything that has happened in that time. In short, it is a time to remember and reflect on the events, people, and things which have touched our lives over the last twelve months. Likewise, it is a time to reconsider our own behavior, and the way(s) in which we reacted to all of that. This, in turn, often leads to feelings of regret, and/or a realization that we could have done better than what we actually did. In similar fashion, this inevitably prompts some of us to make resolutions for the year ahead and/or resolve to do better next time. Moreover, as we mentioned in the opening to this post, there is something very familiar and comfortable about these exercises. Indeed, for those of us who are students of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures, we recognize that memory and reflection are not only natural parts of being human - they are also part of a Divine spiritual exercise that is essential to our emotional and spiritual health and well-being!

In those Scriptures, God is revealed as the one who was, is, and is to come - the God of past, present, and future! Moreover, we know that this principle is important because the word "remember" appears in 144 verses of the King James Bible! The Israelites were instructed to remember God and what he had done for them, their ancestors, the Sabbath, God's laws, God's covenant with them, how they had been treated in times past, to be kind to strangers and the disadvantaged among them, and the tenuous nature of their own existence. Indeed, philosophers have almost universally recognized the value of reflection and memory to humans, both individually and collectively. In the New Testament, in anticipation of the observance of Christ's death, Paul instructed the saints of Corinth to "let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup" (I Corinthians 11:28), and, later, he wrote: "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" (II Corinthians 13:5). Hence, we can see that self-reflection is woven into the very fabric of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures.

It is also an integral part of this process of self-reflection that Christians should imagine and put into practice ways to be better in the future. In his first letter to the Corinthian Church, Paul had demanded reflection about the way that they had handled a sinner in their midst. In this second letter to them, he said that this reflection had led to a turnaround in their attitudes and behavior. Paul knew that this kind of reflection could lead to both positive and negative outcomes. He wrote: "Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done." (II Corinthians 7:8-11, NIV) In other words, self-reflection which corrects course is something that is good and holy and does not result in despair or depression.

Hence, as we all approach the end of the year and the beginning of a new one, may we all resolve to do better in the coming year - to summon "the better angels of our nature." And, once we have made that resolution, may we all adopt Paul's attitude going forward - to forget what is behind and put all of our strength into what lies before us! (Philippians 3:13-14)