It seems strange that New Year’s Eve should fall on a Sunday. But that, of course, is what today is. Many of you are looking forward to New Year’s Eve parties. I’ve always appreciated writer Bill Vaughan’s words: “Youth is when you're allowed to stay up late on New Year's Eve. Middle age is when you're forced to.”

I won’t ask how late some of you will be up. Some of you will celebrate via your television. I also like what some comedian said about that. He said, “I love it when they drop the ball in Times Square. It's a nice reminder of what I did all year.”

Well, I’ve dropped the ball a few times myself this past year. But tomorrow begins a new year, a time for a new beginning. What an appropriate time to be in worship when we can ask God to wipe the slate clean on our failures in the ye…