My wife and I each turned 50 this past year. That milestone birthday is just another day on the calendar, and it is a time for reflection on the past and hope for the future. In that sense, turning 50 was like a New Year’s Day. Each New Year’s Day, many people review the past year and make plans for the coming year.
When I preached this passage to my church family this past Sunday, I said to them that I want 2025 to be different. I want 2025 to be a year in which Faith Church focuses on the mission of the Kingdom of God like never before. There I see a connection point between what I’ve been blogging about this week.
How do the stories of David’s Mighty Men (2 Samuel 23) matter to us living in the 21st century? If you’re reading this wondering “Who are David’s Mighty Men?”, pause and read the previous posts starting here. What we see in the account of David’s Mighty Men is a focus on the Lord, which is surprising given that the stories are about the men. But we learned that it was the Lord who empowered the men to fight victoriously in battle. When some of the Mighty Men risk their lives to get David water, David worships the Lord by pouring out the water as a drink offering.
As we begin a new year, may the Lord your focus as well.
I want us to see God’s empowerment at work in our lives. Those soldiers did not see God’s empowerment because they were hiding in the safety of a fortress. No, they went out into the open, into a very vulnerable place where the enemy could target and attack them in great numbers. Those men risked their lives for the Kingdom. I think it was precisely that risk, that vulnerability, that put them in a place to receive the empowerment of God.
What will our risk be in 2025? In 2024, I saw many in my church family step out of their comfort zones to minister in our local prison, or to help a refugee family from Africa adjust to life in Lancaster. I saw many serve in English language classes with SEEDS. For some, stepping out and risking for God’s Kingdom stretched them…in a very good way.
How about you? As you look back on 2024, how did you step out of your comfort zone to serve the mission of the Kingdom of God? Maybe it was a personal relationship, a person who is difficult for you, that you chose to reach out to and show kindness to. Maybe it was a new volunteer opportunity in your church or in your community that you felt nervous about.
I suspect that stepping out into the unknown felt scary and awkward, and you wondered how it would go. You maybe wondered if you made a bad decision.
As you made choices that were uncomfortable and sacrificial, you were choosing to embrace the discomfort to align yourself with God’s heart. If things were difficult, though, you put one foot in front of the other, and you did it. You served the mission of the Kingdom. And you felt God’s empowerment and you made an impact.
What will your risk be in 2025? When you risk for God’s kingdom, he will empower you. That does not mean things will work out as you imagine or want. It doesn’t mean it will be easy or simple or smooth.
It does mean you will be walking with his Spirit. You will be more in line with His heart and with that alignment comes joy and abundant life.
So make it your resolution in 2025 to sit with Jesus. Ask him to show you an area of growth, a place where your fears or your need for control are hindering you. Ask him to show you how you can sacrificially align yourself with God’s heart.
My prayer is that by the end of 2025 we can each share ways God has empowered us in new areas where we sacrificially risked ourselves for him and his mission.
Photo by Loic Leray on Unsplash
Engaging Scripture 