As I begin, I would like to extend a warm welcome to all the members, staff, students and parents, of the Moreton Bay Boys’ College Community. It is great to have everyone back together as we start a new year. I especially want to welcome the new members to our College and pray that you may all settle in quickly and easily and develop some strong relationships.

Most of us have recovered from the holiday season and are well into doing our jobs and the activities of the New Year. There is a freshness about a New Year, something of a new start. But what do you anticipate for this year? Are you full of enthusiasm, eagerly looking forward to what each day will bring? Or are you filled with dread, worried that 2010 will be worse than 2009 for you? May I suggest that your attitude, your frame of mind and your reactions to its events will largely determine whether 2010 is a great year or a miserable year.

Here are some suggestions to help us to be all that we can this year.

 1.        RECOGNIZE THE VALUE OF TIME

Time is important to us because we live in a limited time frame. We measure life in segments of time. None of us know how long we have on this earth so we need to make the most of every day and not take time for granted.

How do we value ONE YEAR? Ask a student who failed a grade.
How do we value ONE MONTH? Ask a mother whose baby arrived prematurely.
How do we value ONE WEEK? Editors of weekly newspapers know.
How do we value ONE HOUR? Ask someone who lies terminally ill waiting for a loved one who is late.
How do we value ONE MINUTE? Ask someone who missed a plane, a train, a very important engagement that would never be rescheduled.
How do we value ONE SECOND? Ask an Olympic Medalist or someone who just missed having an accident.

2.        DON’T BE IN BONDAGE TO THE PAST

We are special beings in that God has given us the ability to remember. Our memory though may be our friend or our enemy. When we remember, hopefully we’ll remember some very pleasant things about this past year, but chances are that we’ll also remember some negative things.

Often we dwell upon the negative and begin to feel sorry for ourselves. Maybe 2009 was a tough year for you, personally, relationally, career wise. A new year gives us a chance to start afresh, but only if we are prepared to lay the past aside and not allow it to dictate our present or our future. In the Bible, the Apostle Paul wrote:

“But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

We need to set the past aside and continue to move forward in our life and in our faith.

1. 3.        WE NEED TO ESTABLISH A PRIORITY IN OUR LIVES

In the passage mentioned above, Paul says it this way, “But this one thing I do.” Now Paul obviously did more than one thing but what he was saying was, “The top priority in my life is to press on toward the goal for the prize for which God has called me.”
Paul was setting a priority for his life so that he would not get distracted by those unimportant and distracting things that can arise in life. He knew where he was heading and what he wanted to achieve.

We all know the story of the jar that gets filled with rocks and then gravel and then sand and then water. The moral of the story is that if we do not put the big rocks in the jar first, we’ll never get them in at all. It is important for us to think about what are the big rocks of our life? Because we need to make sure they go into our schedule and our plans first.

During our lives, there are many factors that are out of our control, however, it is our attitudes, choices and responses that will ultimately determine the value of this year. I pray that 2010 will be a fantastic year for you and your loved ones and that you will choose to be all that you can be this year.

As the school Chaplain, my role is to support and serve all the members of the College community. So if I can be of assistance to you or your family or if you would like to give any feedback on this ‘Chaplain’s Corner’ article please feel free to do so on: mccarthys@mbbc.qld.edu.au

Shane McCarthy
School Captain