As we are about to enter 2018 in a few days, it’s a good time to reflect on the past year and think about the year ahead. Some choose to have new year resolutions. I have found that new resolutions don’t work for me. I tend to forget what they were and can’t recall where I documented them!
If we choose the right priorities in our lives, the new year resolutions will be the byproduct of those priorities. Whether the specific resolutions get accomplished or not, we are still moving in the right direction and are developing in ways that help us grow and become all God has purposed for us. Some of the things that we can think about are as follows:
Where we will spend our time and energy in 2018? Making time for the Lord and our family is at the top of the list. Working diligently, tithing, saving, and giving is important in getting our financial house in order. Developing healthy friendships is important to our well-being.
Allowing faith, hope, and love to rule our lives and choke fear, hopelessness, and pride is going to be critical to our spiritual growth. Faith, hope, and love also ripen the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and allow others to see more of Christ in us.
Finally, making time for the lost is crucial. It is in discipling the people that communities change, and the Kingdom of God is advanced. Below are some scriptures to meditate on as we embark on the New Year!
Time with the Lord
O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water. So I have looked for You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Psalm 63:1-2
I hope that I can have this kind of longing towards the Lord. There are many things out there that ease the thirst momentarily, but they ultimately leave us disappointed and bankrupt. He is the only true source of life, hope, and encouragement in all seasons of life!
Growing in the Spirit man
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:11-13
It is time for the bride of Christ to grow up and mature. I desire to grow up and put away my immature and childish ways of handling things. Let’s bring to the Lord our self-focused habits and lay them at the Cross and allow the Lord to help us love deeply and do life better with others!
Reaching the Lost
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise. Proverbs 11:30
While we may prefer to be around people who are like-minded, the lost needs to be reached. It is not easy to be around prickly, opinionated, or difficult people, but everyone needs Jesus! Let’s ask the Lord to give us the grace to serve those who are different from us in behavior, culture, lifestyle, or political preference and reach them for Christ.
I pray that we all cease the moments God gives us to grow in Him and reach those He puts in our sphere of influence!
