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ARC Forest Gate Church, January 1, 2023
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As we step into a brand new year, there's always enthusiasm and motivation that comes with a fresh start. But we must ensure that God goes before us and that we put Him first in everything we do—in all our plans and ambitions.
The foundation for this comes from Scripture. In Proverbs 16:1, we read: "The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord." And in Proverbs 16:3: "Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established."
With all the enthusiasm, hope, and ambition we have for 2023, let us take all our plans and commit them together before the Lord. Let us commit all our works, all our plans, all the goals we want to achieve this year, all of our objectives and targets—and commit them to the Lord so that our plans will be established in Jesus' name.
We thank God that we've made it into 2023. We give Him all the glory and praise for His faithfulness throughout 2022. As we look forward with fresh energy and fresh zeal, we don't ignore the year we just had. But as we come to Him with fresh excitement, we pray that He will go before every single plan we have. We ask that His Spirit will prepare us and mold us, giving us the right character and the right tools we need so that our plans will be established and we can meet all our objectives—all for His glory.
We know we cannot see into the future, but God is the beginning and the end, the alpha and the omega. He sees the end from the beginning. With all His wisdom, omniscience, and knowledge, we pray that He will go before us and guide us. Help us not just to start well, but to finish well, with the endurance to run throughout the year. No matter what 2023 brings, we pray we will not lose sight of the goal: to glorify God above all things.
Even when our plans don't go as planned, God has a plan B and a plan C. Nothing surprises Him; nothing shocks Him. We pray that throughout this year He gives us the faith to trust Him wholeheartedly, that we will not lean on our own understanding but will look to Him in all things.
As we drew near to the end of 2022, I reflected on the year and its lessons. 2022 was probably the first full year post-COVID for many of us. We were readjusting to a form of normality, reconnecting, reintegrating. One lesson I learned that I want to take into 2023 is this: stay connected, remain in Him as branches remain attached to the vine.
Some of us are still at home and haven't returned to church. Some are still figuring out how to get back into the church community. Some have started connecting but are still finding your place. But most importantly, I want to reiterate the importance of staying attached, remaining in Him.
This prayer is for those who haven't yet come back, those taking initial steps, those reintegrating, and those who may feel ashamed of sin or disappointment. Regardless of where you are, regardless of what's happening, the most important thing is that we all remain in Him.
Before you make any resolutions, before you make any plans, before you set anything in stone, your first thought, your first prayer, your first resolution should be about your relationship with God. Pray for your intimacy with Him. Pray for your connection with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As we press into the start of the year, I believe God wants us to be one. He wants us to be united. The Psalm of David in Psalms 133:1 tells us: "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity."
When we think about family and unity, we acknowledge that there are challenges. Families have disputes. But ultimately, everyone in a family is looking for love. They want to be close together. Love is demonstrated through unity, togetherness, and being one. We're all different, but God has created us uniquely, and we show love in different ways.
When David speaks about dwelling in unity, he's talking about a togetherness—a band of brothers, a community banded together for one goal, one purpose. Paul picks this up in 1 Corinthians 12:12, saying: "For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ."
We've all been given different gifts. We're all different, but God requires us to be united. Every gift must be submitted and working in humility for the glory of God. As a family joined together through Christ, we have different gifts, but those gifts shouldn't work alone. We must be united in working together.
As we step into the new year, the challenge for us is this: How are we going to walk being united? How are we going to work together as family?
In John 17:21, Jesus Himself prays this for His disciples: "That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me."
Jesus knew there would be challenges. He knew situations the disciples would face. But He prayed ahead of time that they would be one, that they would be united. Yet this prayer wasn't just for the disciples—it was for a witness to the world. When others see them united, they will know that Jesus was sent by the Father to save the world.
When we come together in unity as a family, it shows our strength. It shows the power that works through us—ultimately, the Spirit of God. And it draws people to us in a way that demonstrates the reflection of Christ.
In most families, what we see is that everybody is looking for safety and security. When new people come into the church, they're looking for a place where they can feel secure and where they can belong. How they find that safety, that security, and that belonging is how we embrace them in love, how we embrace them as family, how we embrace them together.
As we step into 2023 knowing that we're family, how are we going to demonstrate this? It's going to take us loving harder. It's going to take us being patient with one another. The Bible speaks about iron sharpening iron, but there will come a time when that iron might scrape your skin, and you'll find challenges with your brothers and sisters. It happens in normal families. People get disgruntled. People have disputes. But ultimately, we have to come back in love. We have to be patient with one another. It's going to take us sticking together even in the hard times.
Acts 2:44 tells us: "And all who believed were together and had all things in common."
The first thing I want to draw your attention to: as a family, we have to be together. We have to be united so that the world has a witness that Jesus Christ is alive. We have to have all things in common—going and eating with each other, spending time, building relationships with one another. You're going to see my mistakes. You're going to see when I mess up. You're going to see all the bits that people who aren't close won't see. But we'll have all things in common.
My prayer for us all as we step into the new year is that we will know that we are better together, that we are better connected, and that we are better as one. This is what it means to be family.
As we move forward, I encourage you to have the mindset that as we step into the second and third day and go into the middle of the year, we will stick together in the hard times. When things get tough, when things get rocky, we will come alongside our brothers and sisters and strengthen each other because we are family. It might mean you take time on a Saturday or during the week for your brother or sister going through something. But we are better together, and that's what family is about: we love one another, we have all things in common, and we are united as we go into 2023.
