The Last Day Of The Year

-December 31, 2023 –

Good morning beloved, happy Lord’s Day, happy New Year’s Eve,

“Also day by day, from the first day to the last day, he read from the Book of the Law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day there was a sacred assembly, according to the prescribed manner.”

(Nehemiah 8:18).

Today is the last day of the last month of the year. I hope each of you had a blessed, beautiful, and bountiful year in every way. We are at the end of the year and the finish line is in sight. What will do on the last day of the year? As believers, we meet every Lord’s day no matter what. This year both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve fell on the Lord’s Day. What a blessing.

We will break bread and hear from the Word of God. We will have an abbreviated service in the morning then in the evening we will return to celebrate the New Year with a pizza dinner and our Year-in-Review Slideshow with pictures of all our ministries and events of 2023. It will be a great day and night.

In Nehemiah’s day, the Israelites returned to their land after the Babylonian captivity. They rebuilt the temple and the walls of Jerusalem. The key to their success was the Lord and how they honored Him. They rejoiced together in the Lord. Nehemiah 8:10 says, “Then he said to them, ‘Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

From the first day to the last day, Ezra the scribe read from the Book of the Law. For those of you who are reading through the Bible in a year, today is the day you will finish. I have been doing this for many years and it is such a blessing every time. If you have not done it before or have not for a while, why not start January 1, so that at this time next year you can say, “I read the Bible, God’s Word and finished it on December 31, 2024.

Reading, studying, meditating on, and applying the Word will enrich your soul. It takes a daily commitment, dedication, and determination to do it, first to last. You will learn and grow so much. Have a blessed New Year’s Eve with family and friends. Stay safe and off the roads late at night.

Day by day with an open heart and an open Bible,

Dean

✝️📖🙏😀❤️