"Teach us to number our days that we might present to You a heart of wisdom."
WOW…January, 2012 quickly coming to an end…The beginning of a new year that moves at lightning speed the older we get! I pray you will seize the moment and not waste one day this year. What will it mean to "excel" in 2012? Allow me to put before you, three goals that I hold for myself this year, in hope you might also come to embrace them.
First, I hope that we will deepen our own personal spiritual lives as we live before the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not simply a New Year's resolution or an unrealistic item on a list of goals. It is, in fact, the essence of what we seek as Christians. For some of us, this will include renewing our commitment to read through the scriptures and study the scriptures, for personal learning and devotional value. For some, this will include a renewed commitment to achieving a robust prayer life. This is not simply creating more lists of people to pray for, although that might be helpful, but I mean a deeply dependent awareness of the role of the resurrected Christ in our lives as we seek His guidance and
leading in our lives. For some, this will include a clearer understanding of the accountability that is ours as we seek to invest our lives. This is articulated in both the Old Testament (Ecclesiastes12:14) and the New Testament (I Peter 1:17; Romans 14:10; I Corinthians 9:24-27; and 2 Corinthians 5:9-10). I hope and pray for you and myself that we will understand what Moses said in Psalm 90 and allow it to guide and drive us each day of 2012.
"Teach us to number our days that we might present to You a heart of wisdom."
Second, I hope that we will continue to do the work of the Lord by sharing the free gift of eternal life to a lost and dying world. May I challenge you, as I challenge myself --- in 2012 to do more evangelism. For some of us it will mean reaching out to our neighbors or perhaps those with whom we work. It may necessitate that we become a bit more creative and work through new channels, perhaps social, community or athletic events with friends and families or those who are connected to our children.
Finally, I hope that in 2012 each of us will make it our intention to pass along more of
what we have learned in our Christian life. This is what the Apostle Paul commanded Timothy in Second Timothy 2:2. Today we call it "mentoring". Biblically we call it "discipleship". Whatever we call it, let's make sure we do it! It is essential that we pass on to the next generation not only a proper theology but a proper methodology of living the Christian life…And so my encouragement to you, as well as to myself, is that we would lead lives in 2012 that are not only an offering to the Lord, but that will also produce offspring, men and women, who will serve Him until He comes. As the old Greek proverb says: "We are planting trees whose shade we will never sit under."
Christmas is over and the New Year is upon us. I hope for 2012 you have set before yourself goals and objectives, both professional and personal, that under the leading of the Spirit will exalt the Lord Jesus and bring Glory to the Father.
Serving Him with you until He comes for us,
Pastor Steve
WOW…January, 2012 quickly coming to an end…The beginning of a new year that moves at lightning speed the older we get! I pray you will seize the moment and not waste one day this year. What will it mean to "excel" in 2012? Allow me to put before you, three goals that I hold for myself this year, in hope you might also come to embrace them.
First, I hope that we will deepen our own personal spiritual lives as we live before the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not simply a New Year's resolution or an unrealistic item on a list of goals. It is, in fact, the essence of what we seek as Christians. For some of us, this will include renewing our commitment to read through the scriptures and study the scriptures, for personal learning and devotional value. For some, this will include a renewed commitment to achieving a robust prayer life. This is not simply creating more lists of people to pray for, although that might be helpful, but I mean a deeply dependent awareness of the role of the resurrected Christ in our lives as we seek His guidance and
leading in our lives. For some, this will include a clearer understanding of the accountability that is ours as we seek to invest our lives. This is articulated in both the Old Testament (Ecclesiastes12:14) and the New Testament (I Peter 1:17; Romans 14:10; I Corinthians 9:24-27; and 2 Corinthians 5:9-10). I hope and pray for you and myself that we will understand what Moses said in Psalm 90 and allow it to guide and drive us each day of 2012.
"Teach us to number our days that we might present to You a heart of wisdom."
Second, I hope that we will continue to do the work of the Lord by sharing the free gift of eternal life to a lost and dying world. May I challenge you, as I challenge myself --- in 2012 to do more evangelism. For some of us it will mean reaching out to our neighbors or perhaps those with whom we work. It may necessitate that we become a bit more creative and work through new channels, perhaps social, community or athletic events with friends and families or those who are connected to our children.
Finally, I hope that in 2012 each of us will make it our intention to pass along more of
what we have learned in our Christian life. This is what the Apostle Paul commanded Timothy in Second Timothy 2:2. Today we call it "mentoring". Biblically we call it "discipleship". Whatever we call it, let's make sure we do it! It is essential that we pass on to the next generation not only a proper theology but a proper methodology of living the Christian life…And so my encouragement to you, as well as to myself, is that we would lead lives in 2012 that are not only an offering to the Lord, but that will also produce offspring, men and women, who will serve Him until He comes. As the old Greek proverb says: "We are planting trees whose shade we will never sit under."
Christmas is over and the New Year is upon us. I hope for 2012 you have set before yourself goals and objectives, both professional and personal, that under the leading of the Spirit will exalt the Lord Jesus and bring Glory to the Father.
Serving Him with you until He comes for us,
Pastor Steve
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