A new year is upon us. It’s full of new possibilities and new life. The old is gone and the new has come. It’s a new day.
The past few years have been full of new challenges for our family, but one thing has been abundantly clear: God can use any situation, no matter how painful or unexpected, for His glory and our blessing.
God can use any situation, no matter how painful or unexpected, for His glory and our blessing. #ThankYouJesus Click To TweetI am not one to dwell on the past, but that’s one life lesson I want to take with me into the new year.
I never want to forget how God blessed our socks off when I was in the hospital. Or how our church family stepped up time and again to fill needs, sometimes before we even realized they were there. Through all the pain and waiting and everything else we went through, we never doubted God’s goodness. Not even for a moment.
Looking Forward
So as we round the bend to another year, I pray that stays with me. The knowledge of how great our God is.
Every year I pick a phrase to guide me through year, and this year my phrase is “Point to Jesus.”
I want everything I do to point to Jesus. From the words that I write to the way I live my every day life, I want it all to point to Jesus.
I think most Christians feel that way, but I want to be more intentional about it.
I’ll be honest, and let you know that even when I’m being intentional about it, I am sure that I will stumble. I’m sure that I will fail. I’m sure that while I am pointing to Jesus someone will look at me and think that if I’m what Jesus is all about, then Jesus isn’t for them. And that breaks my heart. But that’s what the gospel is all about.
That’s why we point to Jesus and not ourselves.
Because I am a failure. I do mess up. I am a sinner in need of a Savior. Just like everyone else.
Romans 5:8 says, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.“
That’s the message of the gospel. We still stumble and fail on a daily basis, but Jesus loves us anyways. We are forgiven because of Christ’s saving work on the cross. We can’t out-sin the blood of Jesus… but when we truly understand His sacrifice and accept Him as the Lord of our lives, our sin will break our hearts. We will want to become more like Christ and we will want to point to Him.
Point to Jesus
If you’re a Christian, how can your life point to Jesus in the year to come?
I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
How can your life point to Jesus? Click To TweetP.S. If you aren’t a Christian you can learn more about becoming a Christian here.
This post was originally published on Books, Faith, and Coffee in 2018
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