Every 31 December we go through all kinds of rituals to bid farewell to the current year and to welcome the New Year. For some the ritual is attending a watch-night service; for others it is to be with friends at a drinking bar and yet for others it is to take the last puff on a cigarette and promise that it is the last stick we will ever smoke. Then follow the New Year resolutions and the renewal of hope for the New Year. And yet the hope of the New Year often does not materialize because we enter into the New Year with the baggage of the previous year. The fact is by 31 December we would have accumulated a lot of negatives that have become a millstone around our necks that we need to discard. We should not carry the baggage from the previous year into the New Year. Here are some of the baggage we should discard if we are to make the most of the new year. 1. Bitterness: Are you bitter? You could be bitter at someone for what they have done to you or said about you or not done for you. You can also be bitter at life for not turning out the way you had wanted. And you could even be bitter at God for giving you what you consider as a raw deal in life. Whatever or whoever has made you bitter, you must understand that bitterness saps energy and drains you of joy and love. If you take bitterness into the New Year then you must understand that you are carrying an unnecessary baggage and you will be doing yourself a great disservice. 2. Discouragement : It is possible that within the year, some expectations did not pan out. That is the stuff life is made of. Even the most well ¬laid plans often do not work out well. So it is very easy to get discouraged. But the fact that things did not work well in one year does not mean that they will not work out in the New Year. There is a season and a time for everything under the sun. It is possible that some things did not work out for you in 2011 because the time was not ripe and it was not the season for it. But you never know if 2012 is the right season for it. So if you enter the New Year with discouragement, you will sabotage your prospects and not realize your expectations. Indeed you may not even have any expectations for the New Year. So, discard discouragement and prepare for an amazing new year. 3. Unforgiveness: Harbouring unforgiveness feels good and sweet but it is one of the ways we undermine ourselves. If you think about the fact that refusing to forgive someone is like drinking poison and hoping that the other person will die from it then you can appreciate the futility and the high price of refusing to forgive. Forgive and free yourself so that you can enter the New Year with an open mind and a wholesome spirit. 4. Lack of faith: The Bible says that faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. The person who has lost faith often does not even hope for anything because he believes that his expectations never pan out. And because he has no hope, he receives nothing. But the real problem of someone who has lost faith is not that he does not dare hope but that he expects things to go against him. And so things indeed go against him. His life becomes a self¬ fulfilling prophecy of one bad news after another. Can you see only exciting promise in 2012 or for you 2012 means that life is passing you by very fast? That is how to tell if you have faith or you have lost it. At the end of 2011, it is important not to carry over any lack of faith that might have held us back and down. 5. Toxic friendships and relationships: Some friendships and relationships are toxic because they undermine your self-worth and dignity. These are relationships that drain you instead of refreshing you; they put you down and trample on your feelings and spit on your dreams. Please don't enter 2012 with any relationship that does not bring the best out of you; any relationship that does not celebrate you; any relationship that does not encourage you to be more than you ever thought you could be. Say goodbye to toxic relationships with 2011. 6. Procrastination: It has been said that procrastination is the thief of time. The person who procrastinate says “I will do it latter”; “I will go tomorrow”. Well, since tomorrow never comes, the person who procrastinates never get round to doing anything. Wanting to do something is not enough; do it. Wishing you could get something is not enough; take action now towards it. Take procrastination to 2012 and you can forget about the year. Bury it with 2011 and you will be amazed at how much you can accomplish in 2012. 7. Discontent : The discontented person does not see what he has because he is too absorbed with what he does not have. He does not appreciate what he has because there is more he wishes he had. Life does not give any of us everything our hearts desire so we need to learn to be happy with what we have even as we work for more but the yearning for more should not be at the expense of what we already have. The scriptures say godliness with contentment is great gain. That means that discontentment is great loss and we need to leave it behind with 2011. 8. Ingratitude: An ungrateful person drives favour and blessings away from himself. Do something nice for an ungrateful person and you will not do anything nice for him again. You will feel that your good gesture has been spat upon. That is why an ungrateful person drives favour and blessings away. 9. Envy: I have seen people driving good cars and because they are envying what a friend or colleague has, they are totally dissatisfied with what they have. Envy will make you focus on what someone else has instead of appreciating what you have. Envy does not make you happy simply because God has bestowed his mercy on goodness on someone too. Let us bury envy with 2011. 10. Regret: You may have made mistakes in 2011. You may have said things you should not have said or done things you should not have done. It is enough to recognize the mistakes and learn the lessons but discard the regret and the guilt that came with the mistake. Let your mistakes make you humble but don't let them make you live in regret and guilt. 11. Anxiety: Will 2012 be a good year? Will you stay healthy in 2012? What if 2012 is worse than 2011? What if you lost your job in 2012? What if prices skyrocketed in 2012? These are the questions of anxiety. Jesus said, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns and yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Mt 6:25-27. Some of the things to leave behind with 2011 - bitterness, discouragement, unforgiveness, lack of faith, toxic friendships and relationships, procrastination, discontent, ingratitude, envy, regret and guilt and finally anxiety. I wish you a Happy and Prosperous New Year. May 2012 be a great year for you.