Hello John and Doves,

 

We made it to January 1, 2025!  The New Year.

 

We are told to "redeem our time" - make the most of the time we have, make the most of each opportunity - because there is so much evil around us.

 

Ephesians 5:16:  "Redeem the time (season), because the days are evil."

 

Father Time is portrayed with a sickle and an hourglass.  He has ancient connections to Cronus or Saturn (satan) who is the god of time and agriculture - depicted with a sickle and often with an hourglass.  Cronus symbolized the harvest and the inevitable passage of time.  The sickle (or scythe) represents the cutting down of the old year; the hourglass represents the passing of time.

 

The Old Year is pictured as an old man and the New Year as a baby.

This picture is of a painting titled, "Chronos and His Child" by Giovannia Romanelli, 17th century.

 

In the Bible we are told "The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are the angels."  Matt 13:39

 

I have a foreboding about 2025.

 

So redeem the time you have....

 

"For as you know not what shall be on the morrow.  For what is your life?  it is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away."  James 4:14

 

For the New Year - 2025:

 

May the New Year bring peace, goodwill, and renewal of the spirit.

 

May God's light shine upon your path.

 

May He guide you and renew your strength.

 

May your thoughts, words and deeds be for His glory.

 

May you never loose sight of Him.

 

May He touch your life with healing and good health and happiness.

 

May "Hope for His appearing" keep you looking up!

 

And may the New Year find us in Heaven!

 

Happy New Year, 2025!

 

The New Moon:

 

This month of December there will be two new moons - the second new moon in a month is called a 'black moon'.  (The second full moon is called a blue moon.)  This end of December new moon is a black moon.  NASA has this on December 30, 2024.

 

We are also starting a new Hebrew month - Tevet.  According to renewedmoon.com the new moon should be sighted in Israel on the evening of January 1.  The chabad.org calendar has the first day of the new month as Dec 31/Jan 1 The Torah Calendar has the first day of the new month on Jan 3/Jan 4.

 

It was in the tenth month (the tenth day) that Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his armies came against Jerusalem.  In the tenth month, Esther was made queen.

 

Happy New Year!

 

May 2025 be THE year of our Blessed Hope!

 

May we all soon meet on that glorious shore!

 

Amen.

 

Chance