The Year of our Lord

The phrase, “the year of our Lord” and the number that follows gives us an approximation of the time that has passed since the birth of Jesus, although most scholars agree that the actual birth of Jesus occurred at some point with the years 6-4 BC and not in the year 1 AD.
We are now a few days into the year of our Lord 2019.  Some of us may have already broken our New Year’s Resolution.  As we enter into the year of our Lord, 2019, the question is, “Will God be the Lord of our year?”

In Psalm 65:9-13, we see what happens when God blesses our year.  God has abundant provisions.  He prepares the soil so that it can receive the seed.  He conditions the soil for productive growth.  This is a reminder that God prepares before He blesses.  We often want to get straight to the blessing, but God wants us to be ready for the blessing that He has prepared for us to receive.  God prepares the blessing for you, but He also prepares you for the blessing. 

After the preparation comes the harvest.  God crowns the year with His goodness and His paths drip with abundance (Psalm 65:11).  The imagery of crowning here is that of placing a wreath upon a person’s head as a symbol of victory.  God crowns the year with prosperity.  His paths drip with fatness.  Whatever the Lord touches will prosper. 
The year was so blessed that even the wilderness was fruitful (Psalm 65:12).  When God touches your life, He can get make some things come to life that you thought were dead.  God has crowned the year with His goodness.  

​For some of us last year was our year of preparation.  The storms that you had to endure were preparation.  The humbling experience of having employer after employer say, “No” was preparation. Your break-up was preparation.  Last year God was softening your ground so that the seed of the word could grow in your heart.  You have endured the preparation, now you are ready for a harvest.  Even if you feel like your life is a desert, God can turn a desert into an oasis.