A new year presents an opportunity for a fresh start for each of us. We can look back with regret or look forward with a wholehearted determination for something different.

Like most parents, King David wanted to help his son avoid the mistakes he made in his own life. Near the end of his life, he advised Solomon to “know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.” 1 Chronicles 28: 9

These words apply to us as we begin in 2021.

• Know and Serve – David wanted Solomon to do more than just acknowledge God. He wanted him to know God. When we see and experience God for who He really is only then are we able to be involved with our whole heart and mind.
• Search and Understand – God knows our hearts. He knows our motives and what we are planning.
• Seek and Find – God wants to be found by us. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus would later tell each of us to “seek first the Kingdom of God.”
• Forsake and Reject – David delivers a warning to the new king and to us. If we forsake God by seeking other things to fill our hearts and minds, the ultimate thing brings an ultimate price.

David’s words to Solomon ring true for us today because we will not find lasting fulfillment in our careers or in the love of our families or even in the ministry in the church. We will only find what we’re really looking for when we make God first in all things.

As Augustine wrote, “God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find your rest in you.”