Sing A New Song — Aneel Aranha  

Hello and welcome to The Hope Podcast. I’m Aneel Aranha. Today, we will talk about how we should ask God to give us a new song if life seems like an old tune.

Life can get monotonous. Every day might seem like a repeat of the day before, and even the weekends are an encore of the previous one. When it looks like we are playing the same old tune day after day and have become tired of it, perhaps it is time to stop the music and ask God for a new song. However, we will need to make an effort to learn the new words and sing them. We often do not want to make an effort because we have become too comfortable where we are! And therein lies the rub.

Consider something simple, like how we sleep. When we are accustomed to sleeping on one side of the bed, we find it difficult to switch sides with our partner on the other! Can you imagine how difficult it can be to switch something major, like a job? 

It is the same with habits. We may not be addicted to alcohol or drugs or gambling, but we have other addictions or patterns of behavior that aren’t life-giving. Self-pity, doubt, criticism, grumbling, gossiping, and anger are some of them. We may claim we want to change, but the problem is the same. We are too lazy to make the change!

Scripture says: The lazy man is full of excuses. “I can’t go to work!” he says. “If I go outside, I might meet a lion in the street and be killed!” (Proverbs 22:13). If that sounds like a ridiculous excuse, most of the reasons we make are just like it! We need to stop making excuses and purposefully go about doing something to enable the change. 

Or God might step in, considering how we asked *him* for a new song. And his ways can be radical. We have to see what he did with Paul to make him change! Consequently, we might find ourselves in a situation where we are forced to change—like, perhaps, losing our job. Let us accept these changes with calmness, knowing that God will use them to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us hope and a future (cf. Jeremiah 29:11).

However, the easier way is to do it ourselves. For this, we must face our fears and let go of what is holding us back. It would help to get excited about doing something new rather than fear the challenges ahead. Having people who egg us on rather than hold us back will also help. And we need to keep ourselves motivated. Thinking of that Audi might help! :)

So, enjoy your new song, dear friend. And if you want to have some fun getting started, ask your spouse to switch sides on the bed tonight. 

God bless you.