It’s a new year. For most people, the idea carries with it the weight of past failures and assurances that they will do better, but those resolutions fall in record numbers. Why do so many people make promises that they don’t bother to keep? I think its typically because they are relying on the wrong person to be successful. Society tells us that everything we do is dependent on us. If you want to make more money, you have to work harder. If you want to be healthy, you have to act healthy. If you want your life to be more spirit-filled, then you have to actively seek the Spirit of God. Personal effort is important, and these are all good things to do, but they are all missing a critical component of success. Instead of leaning on the God that was powerful enough to create the universe, knows every hair on your head, and can call all the stars by name, people try to rely on themselves, the fallible creation.
Proverbs 3 tells us that we are to trust in the Lord with all our heart, not in ourselves. We aren’t called to lean on our own talents and insights to get through the day, but to let the Lord guide us to His will. John 15 reminds us that we can do nothing at all apart from God. Rather than let that get you down, rejoice in the fact that there is a loving God that wants to support you through your trials so that he can use you to bring glory to himself. As we go into this new year, remember that your past failures do not define you, but you are identified in Christ by your faith alone, and to Him that is sufficient.
Soli Deo Gloria,
Matt Howard
Youth Director
