Welcome to 2024! I am excited about what God has in store for each of us in this new year. Our theme for January is "Abounding". I am convinced that God does not want us to live in mere survival mode this year, but to live victoriously abundant in Christ. This week we'll take a look at 1 Corinthians 15:58, one of my favorite verses.
"...be ye steadfast, unmoveable,..."
The meaning of the word steadfast here is "fixed in purpose" (Thayer's Greek Lexicon). We have a purpose to which we must be fixed, and that is the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. These are days of uncertainty and turmoil in the world, and that should not be surprising to us since God's Word tells us that this would happen, but we can be certain of the gospel and steadfast in it. Are you fixed in your purpose this year to live for the gospel's sake? I pray you are.
"...always abounding in the work of the Lord,..."
When I think of someone who is abounding in the work of the Lord, I think of someone who is going beyond what is expected. We are living in a day of low expectations. Christians are not expected to be very different from the world, but whose expectations are those? The world's. Jesus does expect us to be different--radically different. He expects each of us to abound in His work: to be a servant, to be a testimony, to be a herald, to be a light in the darkness. This kind of purpose and identity will set us apart and enable us to make a difference for Jesus. His work is one of hope and redemption, and we can have a part in it!
"...forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."
So much of man's work on earth will not matter in eternity, but we have this promise: the work that we accomplish in the Lord's will is never in vain. It will last for eternity. He is the one who controls the results. Our part is to obey. So take heart--God has a plan for you as you labour in the Lord this year, and He already holds the outcome.
As you step into this new year, be excited that there is a divine plan for your life. If you will consecrate your life to labour in the Lord, by the end of the year you will be able to look back and thank God for a year that was not spent in vain. A year of purpose. A year of abundance.
Your sister in Christ,
Thank you, Mission, for sharing this challenge for this New Year!