I don't know about you but I had a great time over Christmas and New Year's. It was nice spending time with family and friends... though I missed having some of my kids and grand kids with us. One of my daughters had the audacity to tell me that she got sunburned on Christmas on the beach near Brisbane. That certainly wasn't my experience... more likely to get freezer burn here this time of year rather than sunburn.

I've been thinking of the new year ahead. I've been thinking of choices and values. I think we have a choice to re-evaluate values before crisis happens... and crisis will happen some day... sometimes when we least expect.

My mind went to the story about the Titanic that sank on her maiden voyage. She was loading with elegance and finery and many elite were aboard to celebrate this momentous occasion.. and then she sank... only 705 out of 2,227 passengers survived. All of the wealth and power and possessions meant little when the iceberg ripped the hull open and the huge vessel began to sink.

It also reminded me of shipwreck mentioned in the Bible where Paul the missionary was on a ship that sank in the Mediterranean (Acts 27). Paul warned them not to sail because God revealed to him that they were heading for a great storm. No one listened to him... but they did listen to him later... even cutting this lifeboats loose to follow his instructions to stay with the ship. They began to jettison the cargo to lighten the ship... things of great value were tossed overboard... because they were no longer important if they didn't float. Incidently, everyone survived this shipwreck even though the ship was ripped apart on rocks.

The questions that I must ask myself at the beginning of 2010 is: What is of real value in my life? I am investing of things that are most important and have eternal value? From where am I getting my directions and instructions? From the captain of the ship or the Master of Sea?

Have a blessed New Year!

Dave