2020 has come! Unbelievable. 2019 is gone and we can look behind us and see how God was faithful to us, how He helped us to overcome this last year!
We can look behind and see good things we did so we can keep doing them in 2020.
Also, we can see bad things we did last year and now we can change to do the right thing this year. We have a whole year ahead of us to live. God gave us the opportunity to live it, so let’s enjoy it together!
Can you imagine what adventures God prepared for you to live in this new year?
Life is an adventure, and you have to decide to live this adventure beside Jesus!
Listen, we are in this world but we are not of this world. We are eternal people, and we belong to heaven. But, while we are here, we have to live for Christ.
The bible says: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Philippians 1:21
I want to challenge you to live for Christ the whole year of 2020!
God just pressed the restart button. We are starting a new year again, and we can live it for Jesus, we can do things to praise His name, we can walk on the right path, because He has taken care of us! God has been so good to us. He is a good father!
Look what the bible says:
“For we live by faith, not by sight.”
2 Corinthians 5:7
Paul here is teaching us that while we are here on Earth, we have to live for Christ, we have to get a spiritual vision about things because we received The Holy Spirit as a guarantee for what is to come, the eternal life. We have to walk by faith and not by sight.
Today we’re gonna learn how to walk by faith, how to dream, how to make plans and trust in the Lord. I am confident that you will learn and change your life from now on. You will learn to look at your life through a vision of faith.
So, to start this study, I’d like to ask you: What is faith?
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1
You hope for something that you don’t see. In another words, Faith is a risk! There are people who say: The spelling of the word Faith is R I S K.
There is no Faith without risk! When we talk about faith, we’re totally out of our comfort zone, you believe the impossible will happen, you put your reputation at risk, you don’t care what they think of you when you are walking by faith, you don’t listen to the voice of fear, of unbelief, you just believe, you are totally vulnerable to human eyes, but in God’s eyes you are on fire!
Look what the bible says about faith:
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
There is a condition to please God: What is it? FAITH!
Without faith it is impossible to please God.
So, to live for Jesus, to please God we have to walk by faith.
There are some people in the bible who walked by faith, pleased God, and lived in a supernatural way. They experienced being led by the Holy Spirit all the time and lived incredible stories.
One of them was Abraham. The father of faith.
Look what the bible says about him in James:
“Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did.” James 2:21-22
God asked Abraham to offer his Son Isaac on the altar. By faith Abraham would do that, because he believed God would provide a sacrifice or God would resurrect Isaac. Abraham was a Man of faith.
Abraham had faith, because his actions showed it. He had a word from God, he believed and he acted upon it.
Walking by faith means believing and acting! If you believe, you act like a person full of faith!
Nowadays, we have a recipe for walking by faith.
The bible says:
“This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:14-20
There are instructions to live by faith.
- -Wake up, sleeper!
In this year, there is no time to sleep in God’s presence!
The things of this earth try to bring a sleepiness and weariness over us and sometimes we fell tired. The spiritual sleep comes, bringing coldness, darkness, the person loses focus because without faith the light of Christ does not keep shining. If there is no light from Christ, you can no longer see the future with hope, you only keep on living, and end up looking like a living dead. The body is alive but the soul is dead, frozen, in darkness. It must be very sad to live without dreams, in a deep sleep that produces nothing good.
If people have no dream, why are they living? What are their expectations?
But the bible is telling us: wake up, sleeper! Rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you!
- -Be careful
The verse says: Be very careful of how you live.
It is so easy to get lost with the things of this world, the pleasures of the flesh, when we face difficulties, we feel alone, if we do not pay attention, we abandon our faith without even realising it!
You have seen those people who were steadfast in the church, they prayed, fasted, read the Bible, they were in every service, had experiences with God, but along the way their faith grew cold and little by little they got left behind while the church advanced on. Often those who are in this situation, do not see themselves as such, but put the blame on someone else or some disappointment they went through. Their love cools down and they stop caring, and they can’t keep vigil anymore.
Jesus told: “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Mat 26:41
It’s a new year, a new opportunity to overcome the flesh, the enemy. We have to watch and pray, so we will not fall into temptation.
This is a word from God to whole church. It’s time to pray for your family.
It’s a time to pray together with your family. If you didn’t do it in 2019, God is pressing the reset button and now you can do things the right way. Pray with your family, be mindful of what you watch, what you listen to, what you say. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
I want to remind you of these words: Be very careful of how you live.
- -Be wise
The bible says: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7
The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
To be wise, we have to know God, to walk in obedience before him. Looking at him, listening to him we will receive wisdom and instruction.
It’s so good to make plans. I love to dream, I pray and write on paper about my future, and I have a north to follow during the year.
Being wise is a choice. This power and gift come from God. He leads us to be wise, to know how to deal with the things of this life.
The bible says:
“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” Proverbs 21:5
Another verse says:
“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.” Proverbs 16:3
Today, I’d like to invite you to make plans about your life.
Be wise, walk by faith, trust in the Lord, dream and make plans!
Do not be foolish, unwise. Start to live in a different way from now on and your year is gonna be better than last year.
When we make plans, we have goals in our lives. We have requests to present before God. Today we will have a time to pray and to write on paper some goals for our family.
It’s easy to write them, but we have to be wise, to use our faith, we have to dream and believe that Jesus has the power to help us!
For example: Before starting this year, I prayed to God for my new year. After, I wrote on paper and asked for a different year.
You know about my loss. I have been fighting every day to be renewed by God. Every day. And my plan for 2020 is to be restored! It’s a year of restoration! I could choose to live a year of sadness, a year of loneliness, but why? Why do I have to suffer more, if I have a God who strengthens me? If he acts, who can stop him? Who can stop the Lord Almighty? If the bible says, “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him—” I decide to believe in it and to live it.
I decide to walk by faith and live for Jesus!
I don’t know how God will restore me completely, but by faith I can see myself totally restored by his love and his power! He is faithful!
And today you’re being challenged to wake up, be careful, be wise and write your plans on paper. But before you write, you have to start walking by faith, your mind has to be transformed so your mentality is set on how to live for Christ.
Look:
-If you are tired, walk by faith and ask for renewal:
Because the bible says:
“but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31
Make it your plan, to be renewed by God and live for Christ.
-If you are sick, walk by faith and ask for healing
The bible says:
“But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’ declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 30:17
Make it your plan, to be healed by God and live for Christ.
-If you are experiencing any need, walk by faith and ask for God’s help:
The bible says: “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19
Make it your plan, to receive provision from God and live for Christ.
My brother and sister, today you are called to dream again, to make plans for 2020, for your family. You are called to wake up from your spiritual sleep. Wake up, open your eyes to heaven, look to Jesus and his light will shine on you and through you.
You were called to be careful and wise, to take care of your spiritual life, take care of your family.
But, to do these things, you have to walk by faith, you have to open your heart to be filled by the Holy Spirit.
We read this verse:
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
Do not drink the wine of this world, say no to the temptations, to spiritual coldness, say no to the pride that doesn’t allow us to change, to leave the comfort zone. Say no to this world and yes to the Holy Spirit!
Walk by faith and believe that greater things have yet to come and greater things are still to be done in this Church!
Make a commitment with Jesus today, in all areas of your life.
We will pray and You will receive a piece of paper and a pen to write some goals for your life, goals for your family, goals for your spiritual life, goals for you be used by God Here in the church.
Please, pray, be wise, be careful, and open your heart to God’s new. He has greater things to do through you.