Happy New Year everyone! All thanks to God for bringing us safely into 2014.
THEME ’14
I smiled when I saw the theme of the year for my church— Foursquare Gospel Church.
“Our Year of Fulfilled Desires”
It sounded so complete, so satisfying, so reassuring! Like I’m just going to step into the year and plant my feet on blessings already laid on the ground for me.
The theme text is from Psalm 145:18-19
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He also will hear their cry and save them.
Just like every promise, there is a condition for fulfillment.
“Call upon the LORD, cry to the LORD and fear Him.”
2014 has to be a year of constant prayer and communion with God, and walking in the fear of God.
Basically, the back-up verse for this theme is “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33)
As always, God’s abundant grace comes into the picture. We can’t seek, fear and obey Him without His divine enablement.
VERSE 2014
Few days ago, I got a mail from YouVersion, telling me to
“Find… #Verse2014. A promise to reflect on. A different way of thinking. A new discipline.”
As I was going through my timeline that night, I saw a tweet on peace and then John 14:27 dropped into my spirit
“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
And I’m like “Yes, that’s the verse!”
I battle with fear and worry a lot! (Maybe because of my temperament) It was really crazy last year. I lost sleep, shed tears, became depressed, and made bad decisions all because of fear and worry.
But as I focus on that verse every 365 days, I believe those weaknesses will be conquered by grace through faith in the unfailing words of my Lord Jesus Christ.
No matter the circumstances and news around me, I will always have divine peace within me, not the false sense of peace the world gives when things seem to go well for a while.
GOALS ’14
New year: Fresh goals and plans!
As I was reviewing year 2013, I regretted not following through with the goals I’d set at the beginning of the year. I think it’s because I did it reluctantly— my elder sister made me set those goals.
But now that I’m wiser, I’ve already (willingly) set my goals with time-frames. (Personal, academic, ministry)
That way, I can go through the year with a better sense of direction and purpose. I can also measure my achievements better. I only pray I implement the action plans without procrastinating.
THE (BITTER?) TRUTH
New Years are not altogether new. New Years are not new beginnings, New Years don’t mean a new life. It is only a continuation of what has been; a fresh page in the book of your life, not a fresh book.
This means that your past will catch up with you. Previous decisions and choices will bear consequences this year. You will begin to reap the fruit of the seeds you’ve sown in past years, (while still sowing seeds for future years), be it good or bad. That exam you wrote last year, you will see the results this year. The changes you made to your appearance and behaviour last year during the holidays, people will witness them when school resumes, etc.
So brace yourself for whatever comes your way, remembering that you brought it upon yourself.
Life is all about answering questions.
● What is the overall purpose of my life?
● What gifts/talents do I have, and how can I use them for God’s glory and to bless others?
● What Christlike characteristics are missing from or underdeveloped in my life?
● What necessary skills do I lack and need to learn?
Etc.
Life is all about learning, growing and changing! And you’ll be doing a lot of that this year, as always.
I pray we all have a fulfilling year!
Cheers.
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