Lord, thank You for another blessed year!

Happy, happy God-blessed 2016!!!

January 1 starts yet another journey for us all. As we say good-bye and thank you to 2015, we look forward and take our first step into another blessed year!

And although unclear and anxious about what the days of the new year will bring, let us all step out boldly in faith, that God who led and blessed us till now, till 2015, will continue to guide us all our days of this wonderful, grace-filled new year and through more years ahead!

Let us all go in full faith mode to this new year from the Lord! Let us all proceed in full trust in God!

"He leadeth me! O blessed thought! O words with heav’nly comfort fraught! Whate'er I do, where'er I be, Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me!"

 And so what is there to fear? With Jesus in our hearts and with us, all we need to do is obey His words, all we need to do is trust Him completely. Our best reassurance to move on through the days of this new year is that God is always with us!

We look back at our past journeys for 2015 and earlier years. We realize the past journeys have been replete with both joys and gains as well as tears and pains but all made bearable because God took care of our burdens and our heavy yoke all the time!

And so we look forward and move on with so much joyful gratitude for His grace in the past and with so much hopeful faith and gratitude once again for His continuing blessings for this new year and the years to come!

As we move forward, let us also reflect about the past. Did we put God as the center of our lives? Did we serve Him as He wanted us to? Did we remember to thank Him fully, joyfully?

So much blessings each day, each year. Thank you, Lord for Your love. For the past and for the new year, thank You always for Your gifts of life, for happy family, for good health, for meaningful work and service, for peace, for Your providence, and protection, and more!

You are truly good, our dear God, who provides us with grace sufficient for each day, all the time! THANK YOU, our dear God, our Father!

With our Pope Francis, we join hands in prayers for world peace, for an end to terrorism, abuse, greed, and inequality. Lord, please show us what we all can do individually and collectively to promote Your love and peace throughout our homes, our country, and our world! We pray especially, Lord, for Your guidance and wisdom to choose leaders You have chosen for us in this year's elections, that our country will rise and shine as an example of living faith, of love and service for our own people, all these for Your greater honor and glory, Lord!

Spare us all from disasters and conflicts, Lord, and may those who were not spared in the past be able to move on with Your strength, protection, and, grace.

We thank You, our dear God, for continuing prayerful days from the past to the present and through the days and years to come. But we thank You, most especially Lord, for Your continuing Presence in our hearts, in our lives, in our nation, in our world.

Thank You for accepting us as Your children- "see what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God." ( 1 John 3:1). For this blessed 2016 then, let us all proceed in full, joyful thanksgiving and faith and claim and share God's love and promises with all those God will send our way.

Thank You for 2015 and the past years, dear God! Thank You, yet again and again, for being with us always, for 2016 and through more years ahead!