“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”  Philippians 4:8

As the New Year begins, people make resolutions, most of which are broken by the end of January. But, strangely, they are all about what people are going to do, rather than what they are not going to do.

Have you considered making a list of what you are not going to do during the coming year? If so, I suggest that you begin with your thought process.

One of my favorite quotes is from an unknown person: “Sow a thought and you reap an act. Sow an act and you reap a habit. Sow a habit and you reap a character. Sow a character and you reap a destiny.” Some decisions lead to amazing destinies!

It is said that we become what we think about all day long. The seedbed of sin is in the brain. What you think about you do and what you do becomes a habit that becomes a part of your character.

Bad thoughts conform us to the world and lead us to sin. Paul, writing in Romans tells us to rise above the world in order to discern the will of God.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”. Romans 12:2

Yes, God calls us to rise above and be transformed with a renewing of our mind and to think about whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, things of excellence and anything worthy of praise.

So as we usher in this new year, let’s make a list of things we won’t think about and concentrate on the renewing of our mind.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3

As our mind is stayed on Him, we grow in faith, grace and character. May this coming year be a blessing to you and may you concentrate on being a blessing to others.

By John Grant
Used by Permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practiing attorney.

The post Don’t Think About it appeared first on Thoughts About God.

Kathy thought about the approaching New Year as she filed away the boxes of last year’s paperwork. There were things she would like to do differently in this new year.

Oh, there were the usual things most of her friends were claiming as their New Year’s Resolutions:

•    Lose weight
•    Stop smoking
•    Take more time for relationships
•    Set goals

The list went on. The office was filled with laughter and the prospect of hope for change that a new year would bring.  Yet Kathy knew, in a week or so, the chatter would turn to the broken resolutions and very few of the hoped for changes would become a reality. She wanted something more for her life.

That night Kathy picked up her Bible and read Psalm 25. It was full of hope and an expectation of change that only God could bring to her life. She read it through a couple of times and underlined some verses that seemed to jump off the page, bringing fresh hope to her heart.

“Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long.” Psalm 25:4&5

The second time she read it through it struck her… here was her New Year’s resolution!

This would be the prayer of her heart every day in this New Year. She grabbed a recipe card and wrote out the words, letting them soak into her soul. This was the change she wanted in her life… to keep her focus daily on the path God wanted her to walk in hope and in faith.

Take a little time over the next few days and read through Psalm 25 yourself. Consider reading it every day for a week and ask God to make the promise of hope come alive to your heart. Write verse 4 & 5 on a card or a sticky note and place it where you will see it regularly. Memorize it and let it soak into your soul and change your life.

Father God, Thank you for the promise of hope You bring to my heart and my life. I do lift up my soul and my life to You now. I want to trust in You more fully this year. Tune my ears to hear Your voice more clearly. Teach me Your path and guide me in Your truth. In these changing days I need to discern Your ways for me. Help me to put my hope in You, not just occasionally or when I am in a hard place, but every day all day long. Thank you that You are God, my Savior! I ask this in the strong name of Jesus, amen.

May God guide us as we face another challenging year!

by Gail Rodgers
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

• God’s Plan or My Plan?
• We Plan – God Directs

•   Salvation Explained

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The post A Different Kind of Resolution appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” – Philippians 1:21-23

The arrival of a new year brings thoughts about the future and a lot of resolve to improve, especially in the area of physical health and fitness. But despite all the personal fitness trainers, gastrointestinal bypass surgeries, expensive wrinkle creams and everything else people use to look young and keep fit, the mortality rate still stands at 100 percent!

Someone once remarked that our generation will produce the best-looking corpses in history. Of course, Christians aren’t immune from the desire to live longer and look better in the process. And while there’s nothing wrong with caring for our bodies, Paul reminds us that death is nothing to fear.

Eating, exercising and living right is a good goal and it will make us physically heart-healthy, often increasing longevity. But living in a way to be more spiritually heart-healthy is of even greater importance. After all, our soul and physical heart will one day be separated, but for those whose heart belongs to Jesus will live with him forever. Heaven and hell hangs in the balance.

As you peer into the new year, focus on having being spiritually heart-healthy. To do that, resolve to spend more time in God’s Word and more time in prayer. Design your social life to spend more time with Christian people. Get more involved in your church. Go on a mission trip. Teach or take a class or both. Make sure that your salvation is secure. Witness your faith to others and gently lead them to the experiences of being a saved Christian.

Spend more time with Jesus and realize that He is a more wonderful person than anyone on earth. He is wiser, stronger, and kinder than anyone you enjoy spending time with. He is endlessly interesting. He knows exactly what to do and what to say at every moment to make his guests as glad as they can possibly be. He overflows in love and with infinite insight into how to use that love to make his loved ones feel loved.

With these goals for the new year, life will take on a brighter meaning and you can look forward to not only a more joyous experience while you live out your earthly days, but know that your eternity with Jesus is secure

By John Grant
used by permission
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

RELATED READING

• Year End Reflections
• On Whom Will You Rely in the Coming Year?
• A New Year Perspective
• Is it Time for a Maintenance Check-up? – Spiritual maintenance

You can learn how to start a new life with Jesus.  Read this explanation at:
https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/four-laws

The post A Christian Perspective on Life and Living appeared first on Thoughts About God.

Read: John 14:27-31

“My peace I give to you” (John 14:27).

Jesus spoke these amazing words just hours before His crucifixion. His peace isn’t dependent upon external circumstances, but rather, it transcends them. Although He gives His peace to every believer as a gift, our experience of it is related to our faith in the following truths:

• God is in control of everything. Without this assurance, the world is a scary place.
• He loves me and will see me through every circumstance, no matter how difficult or painful it may be.
• To have Christ’s peace, I must surrender my life to Him. When I hold onto my ways and plans, I’ll experience turmoil.
• I have a limited perspective and understanding of my circumstances and God’s purposes for allowing them. His goals for me are greater than my immediate comfort.
• The Lord promises to work all things out for my good. He is continually working to transform my character into Christ’s image.
• I must live in sync with God, walking in the Spirit and promptly confessing and repenting of sin.
• Scripture is my foundation for peace. It increases my trust in the Lord’s goodness, assures me that He keeps His promises, and reminds me of His sovereignty over every situation.

Sadly, many Christians live their whole lives without consistently experiencing this incomprehensible peace. Perhaps faith and submission are the most challenging issues. But only as we surrender control of our lives to Christ and trust in His plans for us will we discover tranquil rest for our souls.

By Dr. Charles Stanley
used by Permission
www.intouch.org

FURTHER READING

• Continuous Surrender
• Are You Afraid to Fully Surrender to God?
• Fully Surrender to the Lord

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Moving into a new year isn’t as simple as merely turning the page on a calendar.

Sometimes, instead of an organized list of plans and goals the new year looks like a list of question marks.

The things of life don’t always fall neatly into place with everything sorted and resolved according to our best laid plans. When we turn a calendar page and a brand new year stares back, it reminds us how little we know about what tomorrow holds and how little control we have over events that unfold.

I have never found it realistic to believe we exert any legitimate control in this world and yet I hear people repeatedly declare how they love to be, and must be in control. When I look around, what I see is a world constantly spinning out of control.

As I enter this new year I will acknowledge that it isn’t about how much I know and how well I have planned for what lies ahead. Approaching this new year is about who I know and that is Jesus Christ. This relationship with Jesus sets the course for another new year and is the firm foundation on which my life stands.

Navigating this journey of life as a new year begins is also a process of holding tight to faith – a faith that endures the calendars of days to come.

Since the dawn of mankind in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve – to the dawn of a new year, God has been pursuing a relationship with us-built on faith and obedience in our walk with Him.

This relationship will grow and deepen when we consistently choose to seek the Lord and faithfully follow Him all the days and all the years of our lives.

As one year ends and the dawn of a new year begins, this is what matters most.

Jeremiah 29:13 “And you will seek Me and find Me, When you search for Me with all your heart.”

By Kathy Cheek
Used by Permission

Further Reading

• A New Year Perspective

• New Year Resolution – by Skip Moen

• How Do You Start Fresh in a New Year? – by Jan Stewart

The post What Matters Most for the New Year appeared first on Thoughts About God.

At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. Jeremiah 31

THE RESOLUTION

Well, believe it or not, a new year is here. 2024 is history and 2025 is a blank slate. What are you going to write on it?

January is the month of “resolutions”, many of them. People make more resolutions in this month than in all the remaining ones combined…. Loose weight, quit bad habits and the list goes on. More gym plans are sold this month than in all of the remaining ones.

People focus on worldly and personal resolutions more than on spiritual ones, yet those are the most important. Remember that God makes resolutions as well. We, as believers, are His people and He will guide our paths and watch over us. But what will we resolve for Him.

First, as we are His people, He wants us to resolve that He is our God. Resolve to be in His word daily and to pray to Him for all things in our lives. He also wants us to be a part of His community. But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.” I Corinthians 12:18

The Swiss are famous for their precision watchmaking. Generations of highly skilled craftsmen assemble many different and essential parts to make their timepiece. Even the smallest gear, if not installed at the right spot, will render the watch inoperable.

It is much the same in other facets of our lives. The right combination of employees performing their specialties makes the company run smoothly. A family whose members function as God intended runs well. A community must have all its departments and leaders on the same page to serve their citizens.

And God has equipped the church to have members who come together like a finely tuned watch in order to further the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Some are gifted as teachers. Some are administrators. Some are givers. And so on.

Just as watchmakers look for the right parts in the right place; just as a family fulfills its roles; just as a community serves its people; so also, the body of Christ, when believers fulfill their given gifts in the right way, functions as God ordained.

Resolve to get to church, find your gift, you are needed.

Resolve to get spiritually and morally straight and become a functioning part of the family of God.

by John Grant
used be permission

FURTHER READING

• A Different Kind of Resolution
• A New Year’s Resolution – by Skip Moen
• New Year Resolutions – Can We Keep Them? – by John Grant

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“Each of you has been blessed with one (or more) of God’s many wonderful gifts to be used in the service of others. So use your gift well. If you have the gift of speaking, preach God’s message. If you have the gift of helping others, do it with the strength that God supplies. Everything should be done in a way that will bring honor to God because of Jesus Christ, who is glorious and powerful forever. Amen.” 1 Peter 4:10-11 (CEV)

2025 is Upon Us! I’ve been thinking a lot about personal goals and what I want to change this year.

A general question someone asked me years ago has stuck with me: “If I keep doing what I’m doing now, will I be where I want to in one year, five years or ten years?” I’ll ask you the same in regards to your spiritual walk – if you keep doing what you are doing today, where will you be by the end of this year? In five years? In ten? Are there things that need adjustments? Are you using your God-given gifts to impact your world and make a difference?

As I think about my walk with Christ this year, three questions come to mind:

1.  Are there any activities, books, seminars, or men’s groups I could join that will teach me something new?
2.  What one or two things can I do in 2025 that will make me be a better reflection of Christ?
3.  Where does Christ want me to give special attention to in 2025?

– Physical
– Relational/Family
– Financial
– Spiritual
– Intellectual
– Professional

I know from past experience my chances of success go way up if any action step or goal is clear, makes it into my weekly schedule, and I have some form of accountability. I’d like to challenge each of us to pray through and answer each question above, then make goals that will be incorporated into our everyday life, and have some way to hold yourself accountable to them. Think about the things that could happen in and through you in 2019! Christ is waiting and ready to help you make a difference in your world this year!

Lord, I want to reach new heights this year and I want to glorify You. Would You show me where you want my focus to be? Help me to choose well and to be a proper representation of You this year. Thank You for fresh beginnings. Amen.

Question: How will you answer the questions above?

By Mike Woodard
used by permission

FURTHER READING

Spiritual Family Financial Goals

Aim for Jesus – by Jon Walker

Measurable Goals

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The post Questions for 2025 appeared first on Thoughts About God.

We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives. Col. 1:9

Something about the start of the New Year makes us all want to live this year better than the last. We make resolutions. We start new disciplines. It feels like striving to do more and be better. Honestly, all of that sounds exhausting.

What if instead of trying to improve, this year we turned our hearts toward God and allowed God to do what only God can do: transform us to be more like Him? It won’t be a perfect or quick process. There will be ups and downs. But what a year it would be if our focus wasn’t on doing more but on receiving more.

These are personalized, paraphrased scriptures prayers from Colossians 1:9-14. As you pray, notice God’s part is to fill, strengthen, qualify, redeem, and forgive. Our part is to respond to Him.

Father,

This year continually fill me with the knowledge of Your will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives so that I may live a life worthy of the Lord and please You in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.

 

Strengthen me with all power according to Your glorious might so I may have great endurance and patience. I will give thanks to You, Father. You have qualified me to share in the inheritance of Your holy people in the kingdom of light.

 

You have rescued me from the dominion of darkness and brought me into the kingdom of the Son You love, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Today, by Your Spirit, I choose to receive everything You have for me and be transformed by it. I want to strive less and rest in the fullness of my inheritance in Christ more.

by Sylvia Gunter
used by permission

© 2024 Sylvia Gunter. Taken from Strength To Equal Your Days: A Year of Prayers and Blessings. An archive of past devotionals is available at www.thefathersbusiness.com

FURTHER READING

• Renewed and Revitalized – A Devotional by Terry Stead
• A Resolution Worth Keeping – New Year Devotional by Jon Walker
• Down the Road – a Poem for the New Year

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The post A Prayer For The New Year appeared first on Thoughts About God.

As we seek the Lord in fresh ways in this new year, I pray that God will guide all of us in taking steps of intentional growth.

Join me this year in choosing to intentionally build growth into our individual hearts and strength into our faith.

This verse stood out to me this morning as I contemplated what God is saying to me with a new year on the horizon. I pray it for you as well.

Psalm 25:4-5 (NIV)

Show me your ways, O LORD,
teach me your paths;
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.

May our hope be daily in our Lord as we share the journey through a new year.

by Gail Rodgers
used by permission

The post A New Year Blessing appeared first on Thoughts About God.

Let your way of life be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” Hebrews 13:5

Content – How’s it working out for you?  Has it been a tough year?  Have you struggled?  I have.  Maybe most of us have.  We all know economic woes, but in the long run, those don’t really matter too much, do they?  The things that really bother us are usually far more personal than our money.  In fact, if money is so personal in your life that it rises to the top of the list, then it’s probably time to read this verse again.  The real point of this verse is contentment.  That’s the biggest struggle for most of us.  We are a long way away from the prayer of the sages: “Lord, make my heart so malleable that I am ready and willing to accept whatever You provide for me.”  We need to learn contentment.  I suppose that process is very much the same as the one which says, “And He learned obedience through suffering” (Hebrews 5:8).

Frankly, contentment is impossible unless I trust the Lord.  That’s why the author of Hebrews points us toward His faithfulness.  How can I be content if I think contentment is about anything except His faithfulness?  If my contentment rests on any other foundation, I will be disappointed, won’t I?  This is a good time to reflect on the truth that whatever the world provides, it can repossess (with interest).  A life built on sand is a life built on people, possessions and power.  It’s wonderful when you have these things but they are merely blessings of His grace.  In the end, life must be built on something more solid than blessings.  The rock-bottom of contentment is the fact that He will not forsake us, even when everything else seems to evaporate.

The Greek verb here is arkeo.  It is essentially the expression of being satisfied with the provision of God.  “My grace is sufficient” is exactly the same concept (and word).  God provides.  How He provides and what He provides is not my concern.  My concern is simply that He does provide and I am called to rest in that truth.  The real character of my life is reflected in the foundation of my rest.  May I be restless to do His will – and to rest in Him.  This is the sacred balance: that His purpose becomes my driving force and His character becomes my contentment.  The entire message of Scripture can be read in these words:  May I find rest in You, O Lord.

Do you need a New Year’s resolution worth pursuing?  Try this:  Rest, O my soul, in the graciousness of God.

by Skip Moen
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

• More Content Relating to the New Year
• Every Reason to be Content –  by Max Lucado
• Learn to be Content – by Phil Ware
• The Secret of Being Content by Max Lucado

The post A New Year’s Resolution appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green and they never stop producing fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7 & 8

The incredible promise of these verses is a treasure chest of peace as we enter a new year. Whatever the months ahead hold for us as individuals, as a nation, or even on the world stage of events, this promise is a sure place to set your heart.

Soaking up the peace and confidence of full trust in our Lord keeps us in a place of productivity, fruitfulness and hope no matter what goes on around us.

As you walk through this coming January make this promise your own. Determine to put your roots down deep into the fresh supply of His living water every day. Be intentional about time in God’s presence listening to worship music, reading His word and bringing your thanksgiving into His throne room as you bring your requests to Him.

Enjoy the Lord this year as you never have before and experience the lush green of walking together with Him.

Lord God, Thank you for Your incredible promise. Help me to keep it in full focus as I walk through this whole year. Whether things around me blossom or shrivel I am determined to stay green and fruitful as I intentionally and fully trust You every single step of the way. I pray this with thanksgiving in the strong name of Jesus, amen.

by Gail Rodgers
used by permission

FURTHER READING

• A New Year Perspective
• Living in God’s Joy and Peace
• Piece versus Peace

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The post A Sure Thing appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“And Joshua said unto all the people [of Israel], . . . choose you this day whom ye will serve; . . . but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:2, 15).

It’s late fall and the Indians on a remote reservation in South Dakota asked their new chief if the coming winter was going to be cold or mild. Since he was a chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets. When he looked at the sky, he couldn’t tell what the winter was going to be like.

Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he told his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect firewood to be prepared. But, being a practical leader, after several days, he got an idea He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked, ‘Is the coming winter going to be cold?’ ‘It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold,’ the meteorologist at the weather service responded.

So the chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more firewood in order to be prepared. A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. ‘Does it still look like it is going to be a very cold winter?‘
‘Yes,‘ the man at National Weather Service again replied, ‘it’s going to be a very cold winter.’

The chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of firewood they could find. Two weeks later, the chief called the National Weather Service again. ‘Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?’ ‘Absolutely,’ the man replied.  ‘It’s looking more and more like it is going to be one of the coldest winters we’ve ever seen.’ ‘How can you be so sure?’ the chief asked. The weatherman replied, ‘The Indians are collecting a load of firewood‘

Now, while that’s a cute story and probably tells you more truth about the weather service than you want to know, there’s a real lesson here to ask as you move into a new year.

In the coming year, just who or what are you going to rely on for leading and advice? Who will you serve? Where will you place your trust? What do you consider to be your sources of wisdom?

While millions are making resolutions, most of which will be broken within thirty days, I challenge you to focus on the questions above and answer them with true sincerity. If you get advice from the right places, serve the right leading, place your trust in the right source and get your wisdom from the right places, the day to day decisions will take care of themselves.

Joshua challenged his people to choose who they would serve but said that for him and for him house, they would serve the Lord. So many people today place their trust in what the world calls wisdom, but the Psalmist said it best: “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” (Psalm 20:7)

In the coming year, pray that we all may do nothing less.

by John Grant (a thought on life from John Grant)
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

More  New Year Articles

FURTHER READING

God is Thinking about You
God’s Mysterious Ways

Learn more about knowing Jesus at: https://thoughtsaboutgod.com/four-laws/

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