New Year, New Ways. Give careful thought to your ways. Haggai 1:5

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2 J a n u a r y 1 New Year, New Ways Give careful thought to your ways. Haggai 1:5 Making New Year s resolutions and not keeping them is a universal experience. We may be sincere when we make them, but then we find them too hard to keep, or perhaps we forget all about them. Let me give you two reasons why it can be good to make resolutions at the beginning of a new year. First, it forces us to look at ourselves to be honest about our failures and our need to change. Many New Year s resolutions are unrealistic or only wishful thinking, but the exercise of examining ourselves with God s help and seeing where we fall short is important. Second, making a list of resolutions can turn us to God. If we are honest, we know we fall far short of being what we ought to be and because of that, we need God s forgiveness. We ll also realize that we can t live the way we should in our own strength. We need God s help. Begin this year by making resolutions especially the resolution to open your heart and life to Jesus Christ more than you ever have before. 5

3 J a n u a r y 2 Hope for the Future If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 nkjv As we start a new year, the Bible tells us there can be hope for the future. First, there is hope of a changed person. No matter how hard we try, we are incapable of ridding ourselves of the selfishness and greed that cause conflict and strife and war. Our only hope is a changed heart and Jesus is in the business of changing hearts. Second, there is hope of a changed world. When we know Christ, He gives us by His Spirit a new love and concern for others. We can no longer be indifferent to their sufferings, and we ll want to do something about them. Changed by Christ, we can begin to change our world. Third, there is hope of an unchanging eternity in Heaven. This world is not all there is. Someday all its pain and heartache will come to an end for those who know Christ (Rev. 21:4). Evil and death will be abolished, and we will be safely in God s presence forever. As you read the headlines or look at your own life, you may be wondering if there is any hope. The answer from the Bible is a resounding yes. 6

4 J a n u a r y 3 Your Purpose in Life Teach me your way, O Lord; lead me in a straight path. Psalm 27:11 God has a plan or purpose for every person, although many people go through life without ever thinking about it. But their lack of awareness doesn t change the fact that God put each of us here for a purpose. We aren t here by accident. We are here because God put us here. And He put us here for a reason: so we could come to know Him in a personal way and then live in a way that brings glory to His name. This is the greatest discovery you will ever make: You were created to know God and to be His friend forever. When I was young, my mother taught me from our church s catechism that the chief end [or purpose] of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. But God not only has a general purpose for each of us; He also has a specific plan for each of our lives. Don t wander through life without any purpose or direction, but pray and seek God s will, and learn to follow Him. 7

5 J a n u a r y 4 Revival Begins with You Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near. Matthew 4:17 If Christianity is important at all, then it is all-important. If it is anything at all, then it is everything. It is either the most vital thing in your life, or it isn t worth bothering with. So don t give the lie to the Christian faith by professing Christ without possessing Him. Don t lock the church door with the key of inconsistency and keep the lost from coming to Christ. Don t hinder revival by your unbelief and prayerlessness. Don t cheat yourself out of spiritual victory by allowing sin to imprison you. Seek God s face and turn from your wicked ways. Then you will hear from heaven and true revival will begin starting with you. The Church holds the key to revival. It is within our grasp. Will we rise to the challenge? Will we dare pay the price? The supply of heaven is adequate for the demands of our spiritually starved world. Will we offer that supply to the hungry masses? May the revival that the world needs begin in you starting today. 8

6 J a n u a r y 5 Tending to Our Earthly Tent We know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven. 2 Corinthians 5:1 Her uncle had some very bad health habits that would kill him if he didn t stop them. But when she shared her concern, he laughed and said he d rather enjoy his life, even if it shortened his days. Why, she asked me, would anyone act like this? I was first struck by his self-centeredness. Deliberately doing something that will cut short his life revealed that he was thinking only about himself, and ignoring all the hurt and sorrow his premature death would bring to his family. Perhaps I suggested, she could remind him of this as well as urge him to give his life to Christ. But his situation got me to thinking: In what ways might we be like him? What health rules are we violating? In what ways are we not taking care of the body God has given us? Someday each one of us who follows Jesus as our Savior and Lord will leave behind our earthly tent our flesh-andbone body and join Him in Heaven for eternity. But until that day as the Bible says Honor God with your body (1 Corinthians 6:20). 9

7 J a n u a r y 6 Vision, Integrity, Presence Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2 In many contexts, VIP means Very Important Person. But the acronym also offers us a character test. The V stands for VISION, for where there is no vision, the people perish (Prov. 29:18, kjv). Having a vision means seeing what can be done, what ought to be done, and how to get it done. The highest vision we can have is to glorify God by discovering God s will for our lives and then doing it. The letter I stands for INTEGRITY, meaning that a person is the same on the inside as he or she appears on the outside. There must be no discrepancy between what we say and what we do between our walk and our talk. The P stands for PRESENCE God s presence in our lives. Without God s help we are doomed. Only in Christ do we find out who we are, why we are here, and where we are going and only in Him do we find the power to fulfill our God-given vision. So be steadfast in your commitment to Christ, and be a real VIP a person with vision, integrity, and God s presence. 10

8 J a n u a r y 7 How Will We Learn? The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple. Psalm 119:130 We know we ought to know more about the Bible but perhaps you re like many Christians: It s so overwhelming you ve never really gotten into it. The first step is to realize what it is: God s love letter to you. From one end to the other it tells of God s love for us a love so great that He sent His Son into the world to redeem us. You wouldn t ignore a letter from someone who loved you; don t ignore God s love letter either. Then think of ways you can learn about the Bible from others gifted teachers on the radio, your pastor s sermons, group Bible studies, even books like this. Some people have a special God-given gift for teaching His Word, and they can help you learn more about it. Finally, get acquainted with the Bible on your own. Set aside a few quiet minutes and begin reading through one of the Gospels (such as John) perhaps only a paragraph or two at first. Ask God to help you understand it, and to apply it to your life every day. 11