Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! As we enter a new year it’s often good to pause and think about the direction of our lives. It’s so easy to bump along from one busy week to another without ever stopping to ponder where we’re going and where we should be going.

Once, when the people of God had become careless in their relationship with Him, the Lord rebuked them through the prophet Haggai: “Consider your ways!” (Haggai 1:5). He urged them to reflect on some of the things happening to them, and to evaluate their slipshod spirituality in light of what God had told them.

Our enjoyment of God comes primarily through the means of grace He has given us. He has promised to bless us most directly and consistently through means such as His word, prayer, and the church.

There are more than a dozen “but God” statements in Scripture, such as in Romans 5:8, which reads, “but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Situations that were humanly impossible were transformed by “but God.” What’s a “but God” prayer you can pray for the coming year?

Many things like social media, TV, video games, sports, hobbies, travel etc can if we’re not careful can take too much of our hearts and time. Trying to stop, by itself, is probably not the answer. Actively replacing it with something better helps us in “making the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16)

May the Lord help us to “consider our ways,” to make plans and goals, and to live this New Year with biblical diligence. But in all things, let’s also remember our dependence on our King, who said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

Every blessing for 2022 – Happy New Year!

In Him,
Pastor Andy