A Glad New Year

January 2026

What makes a glad new year? Is it success? Is it prosperity? Is it good health? If our gladness is based on the rising tides and changing seasons of this life, we will never be truly glad. Circumstances change; people change; yes, everything and everyone changes but the Lord. It only goes to show that gladness, joy, happiness, contentment, thankfulness, and satisfaction have their origins in the heart.

Too many people in our world today are chasing the brass ring, looking for the pot of gold over the rainbow and seeking that certain something that will fill the empty void in their hearts. The problem is that gladness is not found in the latest formula, seminar or book. It is found only in Jesus Christ, the author of the oldest and greatest book, the Bible.

The word “glad” is found some 92 times in the Bible and gladness 48 times. Psalm 32:11 says, “Be glad in the Lord and rejoice you righteous; and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!” Herein we find the key to gladness: being righteous and upright and choosing to rejoice in the Lord. Only those who have been washed in the blood and have been made righteous through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ and who have chosen to abide in obedience to His will, can have true joy and gladness of heart.

Two people can face nearly identical circumstances and respond or react oppositely. How do you respond or react to pain, to sorrow, to stress, to troubles, to problems? Do you collapse in a ball of frustration, bitterness, disappointment or anger, or do you collapse into the everlasting arms of our loving God? If you choose the latter, you will be glad and you will have a glad year. Someone once said, “Pain is inevitable; misery is optional.” We choose by an act of our will to rejoice, to be glad, and to thank Him for and in everything.

As we enter into this new year 2026, let us purpose in our hearts to rejoice, to be glad and to rise above the negative circumstances that may surround us. So often we hear the expression, “Have a good day.” We can have a good day and a good year by choosing to be glad in heart and spread His infectious joy to everyone we meet.