Fearlessly Courageous
Desk of Dennis Piller
1/4/2023
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Small decisions lead to great destinations or great destruction
There are always several ways to look at the same picture. Here we are again another year has passed I’ve been here so many times. It’s just another repeat of the same old thing? Isn’t this the beginning of the old proverb that the glass is either half full or half empty?
Like setting goals for a new year: you know, lose weight, exercise, eat healthy, read my Bible more, go to church more. And by February I probably failed at 80% of my goals or more. Why should I look forward to another regiment of that?
I understand all of these viewpoints and I have certainly experienced the same failures too many times in my life, but I guess as I have grown older I pray I have grown wiser. And as hard as it is to consider these possibilities I can’t fathom entering a new year and feeling it’s just another day.
As anti-climatic as it is to watch the ball drop at midnight and to listen to the fireworks going off as I’m trying to go to sleep, the truth is, this is NOT just another day. True, I have made another trip around the sun and it may look like my life is going around in yet another circle but what is also true is this is a place I have never been before. It is another January and it is also another chance. This last year will NEVER be here again. I heard someone say all of history – past, present – and future-resides not on the circle, but on a line.
Do you think about that line as you enter into a new year? In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth and it was headed somewhere very specific. – to the culminating point in which the dwelling place of God is with man…to those who have trusted in Jesus for it is to them to experience the joy of God making all things new. Revelations 21:1–5
If we stop for a moment and realize where history is headed. That God has prepared a place for each one of us so that we might glorify him and live in the beauty of his Holiness for all eternity. how could we not embrace a new opportunity… in a new year for pursuing some bigger goals for the year ahead.? If we love God, and if we look forward to that eternity, how could we look at a new year without considering that if he has an ultimate goal and he IS the ultimate goal, then how can I possibly go through another year without being in alignment with him and making some goals of my own to be more like him?
Start small. Take someone with you.
It is said that a journey of 1000 miles begins with just one step. Matthew described in chapter 13: 31 The Kingdom is like the grain of a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, that grows and becomes a tree.
My 20-year-old daughter came in for evening prayer and said: dad, I can’t believe how my brother’s kids have grown up so fast! I just can’t believe it!
I looked at her and smiled… thinking … you’re saying this to me? That I have watched her grow up from a small seed into the beauty of a young woman.
And you have come to a revelation of what that looks like at 20!
Our faith and the kingdom of God start small, and sometimes even the progress is hidden from our site. If the pathway to greatness starts small and progress often remains hidden, it’s no surprise that so few consistently embrace it.
How small of a seed for this new year are you willing to plant? How much faith will it take for you to intentionally decide To get off the couch and do something new for God, for your family, for your church in your community?
My life suggests that you begin with three small decisions.
The first is just to start each day with a devotion.
I want to purpose you turn your attention to God first. In prayer and his word before turning to my phone.
My second goal: is to deliberately and consistently look for small acts of kindness that could serve those around me.
And third: I want to be committed to taking just one day at a time.
One devotion, one kindness, and one day at a time.
I’m starting with those three small decisions this year. What will yours be,?
Yes, I am asking you other questions as I am asking myself.
Yes, I plan on making a number of new plans for this year.
But at the same time I want to start small and I want to put God first. Because a small seed, a small decision can lead to a great destination and a great future. And WE have the choice of creating that with a fresh new attitude for a new year right now. This past year is gone with its mistakes and lessons. We cannot go back. But we can prepare to walk with God and create a new a vibrant today…and then tomorrow with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. To places, we have never been before. And it’s all up to you!
Share this with someone. I believe most people struggle with the beginning of every new year. Could you help yourself begin with small steps and then reach out to help someone else along the way with
a small act of kindness…
one day at a time.
Oceans Where Feet May Fall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga3DmPRPAQQ
Excerpts from Matt Brader Start your Year Small
