1)  They tend to grow out of self-assessment rather than asking God to examine our lives. (Ps. 139:23-24; Prov. 3:5-6)

2)  They tend to be pursued with self-determination and self-effort rather than trusting God to work in and through us. (Jn. 15:5; Phil. 4:13)

Is it any wonder so many resolutions fail?

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. (Ps. 139:23) - Survey your life this past year, praying as you ask the following questions.

How has your life affected those in your sphere of influence?

Hopefully you would be able to say that God used you to bless and build up other people rather than criticize or tear them down.

What have you used to guide you in serving and making everyday decisions?

Hopefully you would be able to say that you looked to God and His Word for direction rather than leaning on your own understanding or following after the ways of the world.

How have you dealt with problems, conflicts, or mistakes made by others or even yourself?

Hopefully you were able to apply both grace and truth rather than going to one extreme or the other.

What have you done to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and in ministry effectiveness?

Hopefully you have grabbed hold of the resources and growth opportunities God put before you rather than merely coast through life.

See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Ps. 139:24) - As God searches your heart, ask him to show you what He might want you to do differently in the upcoming year.

Perhaps you weren’t able to answer all of the above questions as hoped, or at least not consistently so.  Here is the good news.  You will have a new year ahead of you to change your answers, unless God takes you home to be with Him or if Jesus comes first.  Those aren’t bad options but don’t you want your life to be on track with Him in the meantime, to make a difference now?

“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” — which means, “God with us.” (Matt. 1:23)

Yes, GOD with us.

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.  (Heb. 1:3)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. (Jn. 1:1-5)

God WITH us.

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  (Jn. 1:14)

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.  And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross! (Phil. 2:6-8)

God with US.

The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.  He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  Yet TO ALL WHO RECEIVED HIM, TO THOSE WHO BELIEVED IN HIS NAME, he gave the right to become children of God — children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. (Jn. 1:9-13)

And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. (Matt. 28:20)

The Bible uses the word “thanksgiving” only 25 times (in the NIV), although you will find many other instances with the base word “thank.”  Below is a recap of the 25 uses with the Scripture references provided.

In the Bible “thanksgiving” is not about a meal with all the trimmings in which we indulge, although there was a “fellowship offering of thanksgiving” (Lev. 7:13,15) in the Old Testament and a “cup of thanksgiving” in the New Testament of Jesus’ blood shed on our behalf. (1 Cor. 10:16)

“Thanksgiving,” in the Bible, is not a holiday celebration, although joyful singing, shouting, and praising God accompanies it. (Ezra 3:11; Neh. 11:17; 12:8; 12:24, 27, 46; Ps. 42:4; 69:30; 95:2; 147:7; Isa. 51:3; Jer. 30:19; Jonah 2:9)

The biblical use of “thanksgiving” is not a once a year occurrence but rather a regular expression of praise to God, a way of life. (Eph. 5:4; Phil. 4:6)

In the Bible “thanksgiving” is not merely sitting around saying what you are thankful for but also being used by God to cause others to overflow in thanksgiving.  (1 Cor. 14:16; 2 Cor. 4:15; 9:11)

Nor does the Bible describe “thanksgiving” as mere expressions of thanks for what or who you are glad for but rather is to be made for everyone and everything.  (1 Tim. 2:1; 4:3-4)

The Bible does not describe “thanksgiving” as a time to get together with family and friends but even better an opportunity to go into the presence of the Almighty God.  (Ps. 95:2; 100:4)

The holiday rendition of “Thanksgiving” has merit but falls short of the biblical use of the word.  Let’s remember to give thanks at all times (Eph. 5:20) and in all circumstances (1 Thess. 5:18).  And let’s remember to top the list of that for which we are grateful with Jesus.  — “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!” (2 Cor. 9:15)

How interesting that the Greek word for “thanksgiving” is “eucharistia” from which we get the word “eucharist” which is used of communion wherein the bread and wine remind us of that indescribable gift.

Vacationing

While we can benefit from taking a vacation, we must remember the following:

1. Our walk with God never takes a vacation.  Maintain time with Him.
God doesn’t take a break from us.  He wants us to enjoy life with Him.  Neither does our enemy wait for our vacation to end.  — “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” (1 Pet. 5:8)
2. Our lives teach.  Maintain integrity and patience.
Travel headaches, waiting in lines, mounting costs, and other common vacationing stresses can wear on our patience.  We might be tempted to lose our temper or justify lying, cheating, or shortcuts.  Those with whom we vacation are watching and learning.  — “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”  (1 Cor. 10:31)
3. Our church goes on without us.  Maintain giving and prayer support.
Giving should be planned and regular.  Paul exhorted the Corinthian church to “set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up” (1 Cor. 16:2).  When vacationing, give extra the week before you leave or the week after you return.  Or, send your church a check.  Also remember to pray for those continuing on while you are gone.  “Always” in Ephesians 6:18 suggests we should be praying for our fellow believers even while on vacation — “be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”
4. Our opportunities to be a witness expand.  Maintain an outward focus.
Some people use vacation time to take missions trips so the opportunities are obvious.  Taking a fun-filled vacation still provides opportunities to reach out to others if you keep your eyes open.  — “Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Col. 4:5-6)

Freedom, however, is not the experience of every country and people.

In Christ we can be spiritually set free from the power of sin and death’s hold over us.  No matter where you live, no matter what your conditions or circumstances may be, this freedom is something no one can take from you.  Wonderful news!  John 8:36 says,

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” 

This is a freedom available to all who will receive it.

Helping People Become Free

Jesus cued us in on how to become free when He said, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.  . . . So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (Jn. 8:32, 36). 

Our role, then, is to:

• Help those who are not in a personal relationship with God know this freedom by reaching out to them with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

 

• Help those who have accepted Jesus as their Savior to learn to live within that freedom.  This is part of the role of the Christian Education ministry of the church.

How We Use This Freedom Matters

Freedom in Christ doesn’t mean that we do whatever we want and whenever we want to do it.   We must rid ourselves of an attitude or mindset that we can slack off and pamper ourselves because we are free in Christ and He will forgive us (Rom. 6:1-2).   Instead, we must be considerate of those around us and in whatever we do live to the glory of God.

Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.  Show proper respect to everyone. (1 Pet. 2:16)

You, my brothers, were called to be free.  But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather serve one another in love.  (Gal. 5:13)

An Even More Glorious Freedom to Come

One day we will have no problem figuring how to live out the freedom we have in Him.   In heaven we will experience not only the freedom from the penalty and power of sin but also freedom from the very presence of sin.  Let your mind dwell on that thought for a moment.

Creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.  (Rom. 8:21)

In the interim of this earthly life, let us “live as servants of God.”

As I was reading John 13:1-11 in some personal time with the Lord, I noticed bookends to a well-known story about Jesus.

We often get caught up in the act of Jesus washing His disciples’ feet and its lessons on servanthood.  We might take note of Peter’s reaction and Jesus’ response.  But, how often do we tie in verses 2 and 11, what I am calling the bookends to this story?

The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus. …

For he (Jesus) knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean. 

I believe these verses are significantly placed in the context of Jesus washing the feet of the disciples.  Jesus knew Judas was going to betray Him but He washed His feet anyway.  He humbled Himself in this act of service not only for those who would ultimately remain faithful and true to Him, some of whom would die as martyrs for Jesus, but also for the one who would betray Him.

I am reminded of Jesus’ teaching:

Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. (Lk. 6:27-28)

If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that. (Lk. 6:32-33)

But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.  Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.  (Lk. 6:35-36)

Even while hanging on the cross, Jesus extended grace to His enemies, saying “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).

Jesus, “for the joy set before him endured the cross.”  “Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Heb. 12:2-3)

Jesus knew there was a bigger picture and committed Himself to the Father to take care of Him which is why He could serve the one he knew would betray Him.

Aren’t you glad we don’t usually know in advance when someone will do us wrong?  We would probably have an even greater struggle with our attitude toward them.  Not Jesus!  He still did good.  He maintained perspective.

If you find maintaining perspective difficult, perhaps the 40 Day Challenge to Maintaining a Healthy Perspective will help.  These are pillars of truth you need to cling to in order to maintain a good attitude toward those who do you wrong.  (Feel free to copy the 40 Day Challenge page from the link above for your own use or to give to others who might be helped by it.)

Prepare for people to visit your church who rarely attend church and do not have have a personal relationship with the Lord.  They could be unsaved family or friends of regular attendees.  They could be people who respond to an advertisement to a special program at your church.  Make sure the Gospel message is clearly presented.  Extend a warm welcome and invitation to return.  Develop some form of follow-up that is unobtrusive yet shows you care.

Christmas Outreach Ideas and Resources

Prepare to serve one another.  As you approach the holidays, both Thanksgiving and Christmas, remember that there are those in your midst who can’t be with family and are lonely.  1 Peter 4:9 says we should offer hospitality to one another.  Make sure these people aren’t left alone.  Others who have lost loved ones frequently find the holidays to be a depressing time.  1 Thessalonians 4:18 says we should comfort one another.  Some people may be unemployed or in financial distress and need a helping hand.  Galatians 5:13 says we should serve one another, part of which may be helping to supply their needs.  Finally, there are those who are suffering extraordinary stress at this time due to overtaxed schedules, increased demands at work, or any variety of reasons.  James 5:16 says we should pray for one another.  Let’s not get so self-absorbed over the holidays that we forget to show the love of Christ to others.  Build margins of time into your schedule so you can be available. 

Helps for People Who Hurt During the Holidays

Prepare your children for understanding the real meaning behind the holidays.  Getting gifts quickly tops their list of why they like the holidays.  Help them focus their attention on Jesus who came to give, not to take.  Help them see Jesus who came to serve and not to be served.  Realize, however, that a few well-spoken words during the season will have minimal impact if they are not backed up throughout the year.

Ideas and Resources for Teaching Children about Thanksgiving

Ideas and Resources for Teaching Children about Christmas

Prepare to show appreciation to those who labor among you.  The holidays can be especially busy for people in ministry.  This can therefore be a good time of the year to encourage them, to let teachers, leaders, and other workers know they are valued.  Remember, however, that they need affirmation and appreciation throughout the year as well.

Helps for People in Ministry During the Holidays