Philippians‬ ‭3:12‭-‬13‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

I am not sure how 2023 went for you. Maybe it was amazing or maybe it was a slog. It might have been your first year as a christian or maybe you have walked knowing Jesus as your saviour for many years.

However 2023 was for you, God wants you to go deeper, further and higher with Him in 2024!

Deeper: God wants you to draw deeper in your relationship with Him. James 4:8 says to draw near to God and He will draw near to you. God wants to spend time with you but He also wants you to want to spend time with Him. God wants to be closer to you in 2024 but He also wants more fruit from you in 2024. In John 15:5 Jesus talks about our closeness with Him and how with this closeness we "bear much fruit".

Further: What dream has God put on your heart? What did God ask you to do in 2023? Did you step out into a new area? If so, then well done on dreaming, well done on listening and well done on being brave to take the step of faith. Now in 2024 "press on" Philippians‬ ‭3:12‭-‬13‬. God wants you to continue to run the race! Now the thing about running a race is you don't stay in the same place. The longer you are in the race, the further you go.

So that dream, God wants to make a reality. That prompting, God wants to make a happening. And that thing you started, He wants to propel you.

Higher: So in 2024 get closer to God and go further with Him and this will help you to succeed and take you higher, wherever 2023 has left you. Genesis 39:2 & 21 both say the Lord was with Joseph and He showed favour to him. Due to this Joseph prospered where he was and moved higher up in position. So whether you are unemployed, the cleaner in a company, middle management or the CEO, God wants to be with you and show you favour.

So let's be people that go deeper, higher and further with God in 2024!

New year. Same God. Same mission. Same plan. As my conversation with friend Tim Jones often goes - ‘Job description hasn’t changed!’

Just before Christmas we had our friend Dave Patterson come and share with the Church. One of the things he said was - ‘In the face of challenge and difficulty what will your testimony be to future generations?’

There will be situations we cannot control this year, however how we respond to them is left solely in our hands.

My prayer is that we will be known as a people who trust our Heavenly Father, stand firm and remain faithful, no matter what comes our way! That we might not be distracted from the purpose that God has given us, to proclaim and demonstrate His Kingdom wherever we find ourselves.

This is day one of our 365. What will our children and our children’s children read of our faith this year, regardless of what we walk through?

The best resolution you can make today is - in a world of chaos, noise, hurt and sadly tragedy - listen only to His Words, fix your eyes on Him every day, and choose to speak His Words of truth and life to yourself and those around you.

He is always faithful.

Psalm 91 (NIV)

1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. 5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day,

6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. 8 You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. 9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. 14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 15 He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

It’s hard not to feel overwhelmed or discouraged when there is so much difficulty going on, both close to home and further away. In these times I have been reminded that I’m not an acquaintance of God or ‘just’ a servant of God but a child of God! I was thinking of what this means for me especially when I face or hear of close friends facing trouble and one word came to mind: Access. When heirs to the throne or children of the rich and famous have a need, they have access to an array of things to meet their needs. How much more access do we have because our Father is Alpha & Omega, King of Kings and Lord of Lords?! He has a storehouse of goods for us to access. All His good gifts are free and readily available for you to have.

Thank you Lord for who you are. Thank you that you are Sovereign, Alpha & Omega, above all realms and possibilities. Thank you that you are our anchor and, in you, we have a firm foundation. Help us when we feel overcome and remind us who we are in you.

On Sunday we talked about actively engaging the Holy Spirit in every situation and not leaning on our own perspective, because according to Isaiah 11v 2 He is the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

This week in work we faced a situation of being unjustly undermined by a competitor trying to take a key customer from us. The natural thing to do was to fight and confront the injustice, but instead we asked the Holy Spirit to guide us through the situation, as He had the correct and complete perspective of the situation, He sees everything at play. He was also able to guide us in Wisdom and give timely counsel. Then Finally He has the power to change things and it is simply just right to honour Him first in all our ways.

So we did this and the course of events were remarkable, as was the outcome. The threat disappeared like the mist, we gained important commercial advantage and we were able to resolve long standing challenges for the customer, which simply strengthened our relationship with them. I was simply amazed at how the Holy Spirit helped us, and I am so thankful to Him. Whatever you are facing today, the Holy Spirit living in you is the same Spirit who’s attributes of interaction are described in Isaiah 11v2.

I encourage you to engage Him first this week in every situation, just by asking Him to be involved, and then having a willingness to do it His way, and I look forward to hearing your testimonies! Have a great week!