It’s a new year and time to rethink, rearrange, and redo!

We’re in the thick of that around here — we did a rethink and now we’re rearranging and redoing our basement.

Phil and I have been like the keystone cops of decorating!  “Honey, I think it should go over there,” says the blind woman!  He dutifully lugs a desk just so I — who cannot see what I am talking about — can say, “Honey, I don’t think it should go there!”

Oh brother! We have shifted desks, chairs, and shelves several times before we landed on just the right plan. Once the furniture was finally in place though, I asked Phil to hang the pictures.  He asked, in the old holes?”

Now think about this with me. If we moved the furniture, got some new stuff and now have a totally different arrangement, do you think we want to hang the pictures in the same old holes? (I’m telling you…Keystone Cops!)

Some of the old holes are hidden behind shelves or awkwardly placed on the wall—random and odd. The longer you are married, the less you should say what you’re thinking (wink, wink) so I held up a frame to indicate the need for new holes.  He giggled.

He knew we needed new holes; he was just  giving me a hard time and he was plain tired of the extreme home make-over!

Anytime we rethink our lives and  rearrange what we are doing, there will still be old holes that remain.

If you don’t pay attention, you will automatically try to fill those old holes in your life.

So, what are the “old holes” in our lives? What is it that we need to be aware of so we don’t rearrange and rethink our lives just to end up with the same old life?

Consider some of these “old holes”:

1. Old Habits —“I’ve always done this.”

There are many things we do without even thinking. Sometimes we fight frustration and discontentment and wish we could change it. But, the best way to change outcomes is to change input. In other words, change what we do or how we think and the result is a change in what we experience.

Or maybe you don’t need a big change, maybe you just need a tweak.

Maybe you need to change the way you do something.

Perhaps you can do the same things, you may just need to do them in different ways. Set some boundaries, come up with systems that help you manage better or delegate some of your responsibilities.

“Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? “ (Isaiah 43:19  )

2. Old Stuff — “I’ve always had this.”

Just because  you’ve always had certain things or activities in your life, doesn’t mean you need to keep them. All that is good and life giving from the activities in your life can be brought forward into a fresh new year.

But, whatever it is that is draining your life instead of energizing it needs to go!

Can you reexamine what you’ve always had, why you’ve had them, and if you should continue with them?

Don’t let old holes keep you from new plans. Jesus taught us that “…new wine is put into fresh wineskins…” (Matthew 9:17)

So, maybe this is your year to get rid of some old stuff or activities and do something new.

3. Old Thinking — “I’ve always thought this.”

You can’t experience the new you if you’re still using your old thinking.

Sometimes you just need to think about what you think about.

We need wisdom that comes from experience but can’t afford stale thinking that comes from a lack of consideration.

Maintaining the same way of thinking for years isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but to keep your thinking fresh, you must examine it, not just assume “if it ain’t broke, why fix it?!”

Perhaps it isn’t broken, but it may need a few tweaks to make it even stronger. Old thinking can become old holes.  You can’t hang new ideas in old holes. Be willing to rethink and keep your perspective fresh.  Sometimes just patching new thoughts on old tattered  thinking compromises what we’re trying to do in our lives.

Perhaps we need some new threads to our thinking! Jesus taught, “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old.” (Luke 5:36  )

Let’s fill those old holes with the truth sisters!

God is doing a new thing in you—new year, new plans, new you!

In the comments, tell me what “old hole” you want to patch over…old habit? Old stuff? Old  thinking?