"People don't change Melissa; not overnight!" It felt right from the moment he said it; only, I wasn't ready to accept it then...On deeper thought, nothing changes over night.

Everyone is talking of the new year. So much has happened over the past twelve months and now it's finally time to leave all of that behind and turn a fresh page. That said, are new years about an instant change? Does everything just fall into place from the moment the clock strikes twelve?

Many of us fool ourselves into believing in Cinderella magic only to realise the next day that life is still the same.

So what really makes a new year so new? It's the gratefulness that one feels towards God for being so merciful and gracious so as to bless one with another year, another opportunity to make things right, another chance to be everything one wants to be. It is every moment in the coming year that joins every other moment in the coming year to form so many such moments that make the coming year a new year. It is taking good memories from the year gone by and learning too, into the new year and embracing good times and hard times with the same courage seasoned with a smile that makes everything about the next three sixty odd days, new.

Thank You God for the year gone by. Thank You for each moment and experience. Thank You for the smile and for the tear. Thank You for the Happy New Year! 

What do we have, to offer You...for can human dignity ever compare to Divine Majesty?
The child says to his mother that, he would fashion for her, shoes out of his own skin
And the mother, calmly smiles saying that, his skin is also her gift to him!
Every element of us comes from You; even our non-existence, it comes from You.
Wasn't it You, who beheld our unformed substance, before we were conceived in our mother's womb?
So how do we create, even if we should, out of our non-existence, a worthy gift for You?
If we were to praise You with loud cymbals; if we were to blow a shofar to glorify Your name;
Then it would be Your gift to us...this Your gift to us - our privilege - to praise You sustains us - both body and soul.
If we were to sing to You, a love song, like King Solomon did; if we were to be a sweet voice in Your ears;
Then also, it would be Your gift to us...this Your gift to us - our privilege - to praise You sustains us - both body and soul.
And do You want our sacrifices? Didn't You find our incenses and animal sacrifices an abomination?
What You want is our heart - contrite and remorseful; And You alone can change our hearts of stone, into  hearts of flesh and blood.
So make haste and touch us; For You alone can make our sacrifices worthy of Yourself.

How many more chances will you give us; or are You giving Yourself chances
Because that is how much You love us?
You are right in comparing Your people to a whore;
Your people didn't stay loyal to You. Instead, they created bonds
With other gods. We blasphemed Your name with every act of infidelity;
You could have punished us and banished us to Hades;
Instead, You sought to reason with us. You assured us that You would make the crimson of our sins
As white as the snow. So great was Your love for us that You couldn't bear
The thought of loosing us to sin.
Like a winegrower prunes the branches and ensures that they remain in the wine;
So You guided us in Your love. You sent a part of Yourself - Your Son - the Messiah;
To restore Your children scattered all over the earth - in foreign lands
You sought to bring Your own to Yourself; But we paid no heed.
Then are You wrong in asking us, "What did I not do for you?"
No, You're act is justified; For it is not You who speaks, but Your pain.
There was nothing more You could have done; You did everything that a loving Father
Would do for His children. It was we who were blinded by sin and powered by the human spirit.
We didn't recognise You love for us and Your divine plan for our lives.
Make haste Father; For we are lost again and time is running out.
It is only You who can find another solution to save Your people;
If You don't save us, who will? Let the wisdom that labours by the side of Your throne
Guide us and teach us to accept Your spirit and pay heed to Your word.

There are moments when I doubt, that You even listen to what I tell You

For I feel like I may have spoken for an eternity, without witnessing any change. 

Though sometimes You take me by a surprise; when You grant me things that I don't remember wanting or asking for.

Yes, now I remember that prayer; the day I sat in front of you, speaking not a word.

Your Spirit it interceded for me, with sighs louder than words; And You, You read my heart

Now that I think of it, was it even a prayer; or was it a thought that just flicked through my mind?

I forgot all about it, over the years; or may be new desires buried this, my old desire;

But You bore it in mind and gave me my hearts desire, in Your time.  

Who can keep promises like You? So many words come out of our mouths and return unfulfilled;

But Your word is like silver purified seven times; it returns to You only when You're will is done.

You promised that You would give, even before I could ask; and You did what you promised, in Your time.

In doing so, You didn't let, mortal faith in You, down; and You raised us, in Your time.

Your psalmist and Your prophets said, that no one who has trusted in You has suffered ill fate;

So man can rest assured that he is in safe hands. Even if we should not receive what we ask for,

We can easily believe that something better is in store; though never giving up on intercession...

Asking to receive, seeking to find and knocking to open doors; for prayer has power...

Your willingness to listen to our prayer and our faith that You listen to every word that comes out of our mouth renders prayer powerful.