May 2023 be a wonderful year for you and your family. I believe God has great things in store for us as a church this coming year. A promise that comes to mind at this time is Jeremiah 29:11-13, “For I know the plans I have for you”—this is the LORD’s declaration— plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
Our responsibility in this is that:
- “You will call to Me” – God alone is the One who is always there for us. Isaiah 58:9a says, “At that time, when you call, the Lord will answer; when you cry out, He will say, ‘Here I am.’”
- “Come .. to Me” – He wants us to draw near to Him. James 4:8, “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” This is a wonderful promise. God will make Himself known to anyone who sincerely desires to know the truth. Do you really want to know God? Search for Him “with all your heart” (Verse 13). Look in His Word and be quick to do what He says. Put your trust in His Son. Then you’ll truly know God.
- “Pray to Me” – our Heavenly Father waits for us to talk to Him. Nothing pleases Him more than knowing His child wants to communicate with Him.
In Jeremiah 33:3, the Lord says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.” The words “great and mighty” may also be translated “impossible,” “inaccessible,” or “difficult.” When we pray according to God’s will, He may choose to do that which the world, in its limited perspective, considers to be impossible. Millions of believers, however, have proven that through prayer God is “able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).
I have been personally challenged to commit myself to focus on prayer this coming year. The Lord impressed upon my heart Colossians 4:2, “Devote yourselves to prayer.” Will you join me in this as we draw near to the Lord by being consistent and earnest in prayer.
Please join us this Sunday at 10:30 am for the first service of the New Year.
Bruce Davie, Pastor/Elder IBCZ