I am reading through “The Voice” version of the Bible. Call me a heretic if you wish. I always choose a fresh new version at the start of each new year. This way things are not as familiar and sometimes the way certain things are worded is so different that the truth being expressed hits me in a fresh, new way. Other times I come to understand a verse more deeply. And, I even come to understand certain verses correctly for the first time. The Truth has not changed – I am just shaking up the words a bit to see what new light can shine on truths and stories that I love.

I sat down yesterday morning and thought through my reading rate for 2014 so I get through The Voice in 11 months… (accounts for days that Bible reading just does not happen and allows the Bible to be read in a year.

And then I sat and thought through what books I am going to study in 2014. Every year I “attempt” to study one Old Testament and one New Testament book in some depth. I say attempt because I don’t always manage to get right through the books I am studying – usually because I am having too much fun in the study and, I admit, maybe digging a bit too deep. But it is fun and I am the only one who knows the plan and whether I accomplish what I set out to do in the year. So, I sometimes carry a book of the Bible I am studying over into the next year. Hey, aim at nothing you get nothing – so, I always aim high and get something.

I also make use of down time waiting for people to arrive for appointments, while stirring supper, eating my sandwich parked on the roadside while driving home after an out-of-town service. I read an electronic Bible. No coloured pencils to mark it up, no notes in the margins, no real plan other than not wasting opportunities to read through the New Testament several times a year. Yup! Instead of wasting time and just retreating into nothingness or texting people I read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John… And it is amazing what a quick “time of refreshing” like this can do for the day.

Add to this an average of a book a week. Some weeks when doing a lot of flying I can read 3 or 4 books – other weeks I don’t even manage to crack the cover. Summers are better than winters for reading. But, over a year I average 52 books. I plan it that way. it is intentional. I do it on purpose. Anyone I mentor knows that reading is what leaders do. If we don’t read we stop leading. Leaders are readers. So, I always have a pile of books I am working through and my mini iPad is always with me – because many of the books I am planning to read are eBooks. Hey, you can carry a library of books in one small tablet. What a day to be alive. And you can color code and make notes in a eBook just like I do in a regular (real) paper book.

So, I have made good use of the lull in my life last Sunday afternoon (I had a complete Sunday off … the first in many years) and did some planning for 2014. Growing and maturing does not happen accidentally. It is intentional.

Hope you have a terrific 2014 and that you will grow and natural spiritually and that your relationship with your God will deepen and mature. Blessings as you begin another year of your journey with Jesus.

As we approach another new year – a year that is a gift from the Lord Jesus – we need to take some time to think through the year just ending. When doing so, be seriously and brutally honest with yourself. Don’t be “self-deceived.” Take a look at your growth during the past year.

Are you further ahead in your journey of faith than when the year first began?

If there were some speed bumps or detours on your journey in 2014 – what did you learn and how have you applied those lessons to your life so that you are different as a result of having these experiences?

Did your “devotional life” really do what it is suppose to do – allow you to share intimacy with the Father. If it didn’t and your intimacy is either the same or less than when the year started what are you going to do differently so this downward slide does not continue?

Have you allowed your faith journey to become a religious activity? Do you measure your success and failure in terms of what you are doing or attempted to do or in terms of your love intimacy with Jesus?

What are you believing God for? Jesus said that it would be done unto us according to our faith – so what are you applying your faith against? What is it you are believing God will do through you (not for you) in 2014? Did you receive what you were believing for during 2013?

Are you growing in your knowledge and understanding of the Bible which is the Word of God? If not, why not? And, if not, what are you going to do differently in 2014 so that it is not another year when your spiritual heart rate simply flatlines?

What are you going to be reading in 2014 that will help you to fulfill the call of God on your life? Every believer has a call upon their life and you should be reading and studying to better fulfill that call. So, which books have you planned to read and what kind of reading plan have you developed?

In regards to seeking and saving the lost – what are you going to change and do differently so that you actually see people come to Jesus during the year? If you have not been intentionally seeking and saving the lost – what are you going to do so that this becomes a vital part of your daily life?

You get the idea. The philosopher Plato once said: “An unexamined life is not worth living.” I agree. So, this is a good time to examine what was, what is, and maybe even what you would like to see in your future. Note – I am not talking about financial goals, family goals, or travel plans. This is much more internal than that. Setting goals is good – but this is about who you are and not what you do.

Have fun!

Jesus came to seek and save the lost. Jesus sends His disciples into the world to do the same. His command, “Go into all the world and make disciples.” But, is the average Christian doing it? Do they really believe that they – not the professional, paid person up front – are to “go” and “share?”

A survey of 2,930 protestant churchgoers in the United States found:

80% agree that they have a personal responsibility to share their belief in Christ with non-Christians. Which means 20% are not hearing the command of Christ or not taking it personally. A failure of communications or a simple act of justifying rebellion?

75% feel comfortable sharing their belief in Christ with someone else. This, as other statistics in the survey indicate, does not mean that they do share with others – just that they believe they would feel comfortable doing so.

61% have not shared how to become a Christian with anyone in the last six months. I rest my case (see the point above).

48% have not invited anyone to church in the last six months. Should this be somehow considered a sin? Just kidding!

20% rarely or never pray for people who are not professing Christians. And who was it that said, “My house shall be a house of prayer for all the nations?”

8% are hesitant to let others know that they are Christians. Jesus’ comment about being “ashamed of Him” would be good to quote here.

The “Good News of great joy for unto you is born a Saviour” is not good news until others hear it.And apparently we are not doing well sharing our good news with others.

During this Christmas week and as we enter into the new year – let’s ponder and think about what will change these statistics in 2014. Let’s look at our own witness and our lifestyle (which is always a strong witness) and determine to be a better witness – by words and deeds – in the coming year.

The angel announced “I bring you good news of a great joy… for unto you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10-11) Settle down – I am not going to preach at you. You get enough of that in church week-after-week. But, I do have a comment or two to share with you. Well, more a question or two.

Seen much “great joy” recently in your travels and activities relating to this Christmas season we are in? I haven’t. I admit right up-front that I have not done any Christmas shopping (for gifts). I will buy my wife a gift on Monday and that’s it. But, I have been out daily with my work as a leader in a local church; I have gone food shopping; I have entered the post office area of my local drug store and stood in line at the bank; attended “Winter Festivals” (once called Christmas Concerts)… And, I have been pushed, shoved, ignored, elbowed, almost run over, close to being run into… AND worked hard at carrying on numerous conversations about Jesus throughout all these mild trials and tribulations. And, I must admit I have not seen much joy let alone “great joy.”

Second question: “Have you seen much that has had to do with the real meaning of Christmas – you remember, the birth of the Saviour of all humankind on that first Christmas morning in the City of Bethlehem?” I think not. I have been in numerous stores – food stores, several electronic stores, a Walmart or two, Staples, several restaurants, and a few other establishments (not to buy but to witness to people I know who work there and encouragement them in this major rush) and I have seen little that would remind people the real “reason for the season.”

So, in our tolerant, materialistic society where everything goes, including our money, I am finding that the message of Christ, the “good news of great joy” is being ignored, lost, forgotten. In our frantic pace of life we are too unsettled and rattled to recognize or welcome the Prince of Peace whose birth we celebrate. Jesus has been lost and the purpose of the season buried.

So, I buy one gift – a simple gift of something that is needed by my wife. And, I spend some extra time with family members enjoying a meal, a game night, a quiet cup of coffee… But, more important, I spend more time in my study with my Bible – the Word of God. I spend more time focused on my Lord and Savior. I speak with Jesus about 2013 and what I did or did not do for Him. And, we look together at what He is asking me to do with Him in 2014 and beyond. I honestly refuse to get sucked into the materialistic madhouse that Christmas has become. I want to experience the joy and peace that Christmas is all about.

Maybe I am just getting old but…

In the Gospel of John Jesus is having a conversation with the Jews and it is quite a lengthy conversation (John 8). Like most good conversations it goes back and forth. They say something and Jesus responses. They then either offer a rebuttal or switch subjects and try again to convince Him that they are of good quality stock as they are Abraham’s descendants and they are in right relationship with God. Jesus loves them as He discusses many root issues with them – responding gently and lovingly because He sees them as lost sheep without a shepherd. They don’t realize they are “lost” but think everything is “good to go.”

Near the end of this amazing exchange Jesus gets to the root of the problem. Jesus states very clearly, “You say, ‘He is our God,’ but you are not in relationship with Him. I know Him intimately…I know Him, and I do as He says.” (John 8:54a-55)

As I read that the other day I realized that Jesus could say the exact same thing to many today who are church attenders and who call themselves Christians. They hold to the outward form of our religion but deny the power that brings life change. (2 Timothy 3:5) They have said all the right things and added all the right disciplines (prayer, Bible reading, church attendance, small group involvement) but like the pharisees “they are wrong, because they know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22:29) They are reading the Bible but not coming to know the Author of the Bible. They have not had an encounter with the living God and thus also have not experienced the power of God that brings about a total makeover allowing them to be “new creatures in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17). They are cultural Christians going through the motions without the emotions (love, thankfulness, contentment, peace).

Jesus continues to speak today and He is saying to many, “…you are not in relationship with Him.” And, like Jesus, the Holy Spirit is inviting many who call themselves Christians to know Him intimately and do as He says. However, because many have been taught that they are right with God having said a Sinner’s Prayer they assume the message is for others. They miss the invitation and their opportunity. They have been deceived by the church that man has built. Their minds are blinded and they are holding to the letter of the Law without knowing the purpose of the Law. They have yet to experience true life and think that what they have is the “norm” and so are not looking for more. They are not searching for life which is, of course, only found in Him and an intimate relationship with Him.

If you are a church attender, a cultural Christian, and find yourself empty of real life – you are going through the motions and doing everything that you have been taught to do but find it unfulfilling and boring… If you are “plugged in” but there is no power in the plug – then it is time to take an honest look at your life starting on the inside. The starting point of everything the Christian faith and the true Church that Jesus is building is an intimate relationship with God the Father and fellowship with His Spirit. That’s the place to start. This is foundational to everything else.

God is speaking to the church and letting us know that life is available and eternal life (a personal relationship with Him – Romans 6:23b and John 17:3) is also available. Both are found only in a relationship with God our Heavenly Father – and that relationship begins when we are convicted of our sins, repent with godly sorrow and seek forgiveness (2 Corinthians 7:8-10).