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Believing God is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine

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Every Spiritual Blessing

He has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing

Happy New Year! Happy Monday! Today is the first workday of the New Year. Many of us return to work with a sense of optimism and hope. It is time to dream. It is time to look forward to new beginnings.

This year will be different we tell ourselves. It has to be different. Maybe 2015 was not such a good year. And the year before that. And the year before that.

Then there is part of us that tells us nothing is going to change. It is going to be more of the same – overwhelmed, exhausted, over-scheduled, anxious, isolated, and dissatisfied.

Let me tell you right now that this year can be different. But it has nothing to do with turning a page on a calendar. It has nothing to do with a different number. It has everything to do with God.

Our God is a God of new beginnings. Every day is a new day. Every day is a new start. You are a new creation in him (see 2 Corinthians 5:17). The past is in the past. There is a whole new future that awaits.

The Book of Ephesians gives us some insight. The Apostle Paul writes:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” (Ephesians 1:3–4, ESV)

Every spiritual blessing! Did you read that? Say it out loud. Every spiritual blessing!

There is nothing God holds back. Through Christ, you have full access to everything you need. He has given you everything worth giving you.

God may not give you physical wealth. But he has given you something even greater. It is called contentment.

God may not give you freedom from all the troubles of the world. But he has given you his perfect presence and the promise to carry you through.

Every spiritual blessing is what empowers us to live in this world but not of this world. It is what makes you different and sets you apart from those who do not know Christ. It is a confidence that even though kingdoms of the world may fall, there is a greater kingdom that remains.

He has given you the gift of faith. He has given you a high calling to serve his kingdom. He has given you abundant life. You are more blessed than you will ever realize.

Now you may wonder if God has already given you every spiritual blessing, why do you not feel more blessed? The hang up is not so much about God not giving. The problem is more about our not receiving. We will talk more about that tomorrow.

Questions for Reflection

  1. What does it mean to you that God has already given you every spiritual blessing?
  2. Write down five blessings you experienced in 2015.
  3. What do you pray to be different in 2016? What is God’s role in making that happen?
  4. Share your comments.

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Reconnecting with God in the New Year

The Good Shepherd Daily Bible Readings for 2014

We are approaching the end of 2013 and the beginning of 2014. It is a time of the year when many people think about setting goals for the new year. Many of these goals revolve around living a healthier lifestyle such as eating better, exercising more, and being more relational.

Some people also make it a priority to reconnect with God in a greater way. This might mean making Sunday morning worship a greater priority, praying more regularly, or making a commitment to read the Bible daily.

Unfortunately, we fail with many of these goals after only a short time and end up frustrated. We are piled on with extra guilt and are left feeling worse than before. We are left with remorse and frustration for letting God, our friends, our family, and ourselves down.

Over the next two weeks, I would like to offer some thoughts on how we might move towards better accomplishing our goals and practicing grace with ourselves when we fail to accomplish those goals.

One goal I had for a long time was to read the entire Bible. This was something I tried every year, but inevitably would fail. Eventually, I was able to accomplish my goal after many unsuccessful attempts. Through the process, there was much I learned about accomplishing a goal and I wanted to share them with you:

1) Remember what it is about. For me, the ultimate goal was not reading the Bible in year. That is not the end into itself. The purpose of reading and studying the Bible is spending time with Jesus and to be able to more faithfully follow him. This leads to greater joy, peace, and all the fruit of the spirit. When you are struggling with a goal, always go back to the “why.”

2) Don’t let the calendar defeat you. When I would get behind a few days, I would become overwhelmed by the amount of reading I would need to do to “catch up.” But remember, the calendar is a guide. If you get behind, so what? You are no less of a person because you finish two weeks or even a month late. Another thing you might do is consider starting early. We have two weeks until the end of the year. Start now. You will have two weeks of grace built into your schedule. No one told you you had to start on January 1. If you have a goal to participate in the Good Shepherd Daily Bible Readings in 2014, they are now available online. Why not get started today?

3) Get some accountability! Find someone else to partner with you. Get an accountability partner to join with you in accomplishing your goals. This is someone who will hold you accountable and give you encouragement as well. You are much much more likely to accomplish something when you know someone is going to ask you how you are doing. Make sure the people in your life are aware of what you are trying accomplish so they can help you and not hinder you.

4) Write down your goal and put it somewhere you will regularly review it. Many studies have shown that you are far more likely to succeed in fulfilling your goals if you write them down and clearly articulate them with words. A goal is not really a goal until you put it into words.

5) Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Less is more. Oftentimes we destine ourselves for failure, because we try to do too much, too soon. Instead of trying to read the whole Bible over the course of the year, read the New Testament this year and the Old Testament next year. Or rather than thinking in terms of a year, make a goal to read the Book of Proverbs over the course of a month. There are conveniently 31 chapters in that book. Making your goal too overwhelming will only lead to frustration.

6) Keep going. It is inevitable that you will stumble. Life will encroach upon your ideal circumstances. How will you handle the interruptions that life brings to your well laid out plan? Think through the potential pitfalls that will hinder the accomplishment of your goals before you hit them. Consider why you failed in the past and what will be different this time.

7) Make it fun and enjoyable. If it is not something that is enjoyable, any excuse will do.

8) Make sure your goals are God honoring. There are many good things we can do, but is it the God thing. Make sure what you are working toward is what God would have you work towards. If not, it is going to be a hard road.

9) What do you need to quit? Sometimes it is not a matter of being more determined, but rather learning to say no. You can’t do everything. For example, to spend more time in God’s Word you may need to spend less time on Facebook or watching TV. Make sure to regularly examine your use of time.

What other ideas do you have? Would love to hear. Make sure to share in the comments section below. Next week we will talk about how to pick ourselves up after we fall down.