How Dr. Seuss might paraphrase Philippians 4

Oh, the places you will go.
The God from Whom all blessings flow
will lead you in this brand new year
according to His will.

And though your traveling days be few,
the journey that’s in store for you
does not require leaving home
to follow where God leads.

The places that He has in mind
have names like… Joyful, Grateful, Kind,
Acceptance, Peace-filled, Positive
and Generosity.

God wants to take us where life grows.
Where faith takes root much like a rose.
His grand itinerary finds us
going every day.

We’ll go to where we can be still
where hungry souls can find their fill
of that which nourishes and gives
us strength to face what’s next.

We’ll trudge through valleys dark and drear
where we will question if God’s near
or if He can be trusted
when the trail is overgrown.

But we’ll discover mountain peaks
where God rewards the one who seeks
His Kingdom more than anything
and learns to doubt his doubts.

And based upon what St. Paul said,
these ports of call of which we’ve read
invite us all to guard our minds
and fix the way we think.

A 2020 vision sees
a forest not just single trees
and focuses on what is true
and honorable and right.

It ponders what is praise-worthy
and excellent for you and me.
What’s admirable and honorable
are bait for godly brains.

Don’t worry. Pray. That is the key
to lock up our anxiety.
For in this coming year we’ll find
the source of stress in spades.

The journey that we now begin
will find God faithful once again
as we resolve then daily do
the things we have resolved.

Ah yes, the places we will go
will stretch us more than we can know.
But in the end (with gratitude)
we’ll look at where we’ve been.