Someone said to me recently that he was looking forward to January 2nd, 2000, because he hoped that by then all the millennium hype would have begun to dissipate.
I assumed he was suffering from a common complaint of overexposure to the pre-millennium hysteria which seems to have been nourished particularly by the commercial and media worlds.
My reply was to suggest that he was going to be bitterly disappointed. Although we may not like it, the fact is that there will be those who will want to use the significance of this whole year for commercial gain and as an excuse for continuing the frenzy of "celebration".
Certainly, those of us who are convinced that the relevance of the year 2000 is focused on the coming of Jesus Christ, God's son, into our world to be the saviour of people, will have to keep reminding our society of the true meaning of Y2K for some time yet. We may not succeed with everyone, but we still hope that increasingly more people will grasp the authentic significance of this special point in time.
Whatever people feel about all the hype and commercialism, there is something exciting about being alive when the world enters a new millennium. However, one effect has been to create the expectation that something spectacular is taking place.
The problem is that we can get carried away with the idea that there is something "magical" about a new millennium. It is possible even to assume that a change of date on the calendar is somehow going to initiate enormous changes which will have a lasting impact.
The reality is that to a very large extent entering a new millennium isn't going to make a great deal of difference because so much will go on unchanged.
On a personal level, after a few days' holiday most of us go back to the ordinariness of our lives. After the excitement we return to the routine we left off for a while. Immediately we do that we find ourselves facing those same concerns which have been with us for some time.
On a national level, there are still issues which remain unresolved. The problems of homelessness, the attitude to refugees, the increasing gap between the rich and the poor, along with many other questions continue to be on the agenda. All the problems which have been with us for decades did not disappear at the stroke of midnight on December 31st.
While in Northern Ireland much euphoria exists over recent political developments, there are still many who remain unconvinced about the sincerity of the paramilitary groups. In addition, there is still a great feeling of hurt in a large section of the community. Many express their apprehension and even fear that the peace now being enjoyed will not last. Enormous changes may have taken place, but problems remain.
On a global scale, humanity faces the constant threat of war and conflict, along with environmental disasters. Millions are threatened with malnutrition and poverty. Vast numbers of children suffer abuse and die from curable diseases. Many politicians and national leaders are motivated by selfishness, greed and the desire for power. Millions suffer as a result.
While the calendar has changed so much remains the same. If we are content to accept that, by our lack of interest and inactivity, we will contribute to things remaining the same. On the other hand, we can face up to this as a very real challenge. There can be a change. The new millennium can see a difference. There is the possibility of a new start.
Although we may be convinced that change is possible and are motivated to do something, the very scale of the problems can be mind-blowing. When we consider the issues facing our society it doesn't take long to persuade us that, realistically, there is so much concerning which we can make no significant contribution.
On the one hand we can be led to feel overwhelmed and on the other to sink in complete despair.
However, that does not absolve us from facing the challenge to produce change. Such changes need to come about if this island is going to be a different place in the third millennium. Real peace can be established when the threat and use of violence are removed from the political scene.
Justice comes about when people realise they do have a responsibility towards others and move away from individualism and selfishness. Materialism and hedonism can give way to sharing resources with those less well off. Esteem for others can take the place of disrespect, and dishonesty can be replaced with truth. At every level of society, righteousness can characterise attitudes and conduct.
Will a new millennium make any difference? It will, but only if we become different people. For changes to come about, individuals need to change. But the truth is that we cannot do so in any radical way through our own efforts.
We can, and do, make New Year resolutions, and for the vast majority of us if they last through the month of January that's a miracle in itself. New millennium resolutions will doubtless fare no better. That happens because of the frailty and fickleness of our humanity.
If we need to be changed to bring about change, and since we cannot by our own efforts produce that, then change in us must come from outside ourselves. That is the very work God does in the lives of those individuals who acknowledge to Him their desire to be changed and admit the impossibility of doing it themselves.
Change which comes about involves Him transforming us. When that happens we live lives that are radically different because we are characterised by obedience to His will. We do not live for ourselves but for Him. Our lives are patterned on His. This is what brings peace and contentment to our minds and usefulness to our living.
Each of us has our hopes as we move into this new millennium. I know I share this hope with many others. It is that we will see a new Ireland because its people have been changed by the power of God's grace at work in them. He is the Unchanging One who changes people, and for them the old has gone and the new has come.
