The year that was

Hi how are you all today? I am well and in the middle of Christmas production rehearsals and community carol events. I haven’t had much time to get presents, food or anything. I’m a bit behind. How is your Christmas preparations?

In my first post of this year, God gave me 2025- the year of renewal. Have you felt a shift in your life this year? Around the world many people are coming to know Jesus as their Saviour and Lord. Therefore, it seems renewal has come this year- people are going back to the faith they once knew.

I think for me renewal culminated in my holiday in November where God asked me to recalibrate my life. This was challenging and really revealed the things that I spend my time doing. They are not bad but sometimes it is good to do a stocktake.

Let’s have a look at Proverbs 22 starting in verse 17 in the Message Bible which states:

^17-21 Listen carefully to my wisdom;
    take to heart what I can teach you.
You’ll treasure its sweetness deep within;
    you’ll give it bold expression in your speech.
To make sure your foundation is trust in God,
    I’m laying it all out right now just for you.
I’m giving you thirty sterling principles—
    tested guidelines to live by.
Believe me—these are truths that work,
    and will keep you accountable
    to those who sent you.

These verses are talking about listening to the wisdom of God. In the year that was and the one coming up, Gods wisdom needs to be around our lives every day. We just don’t get it; we ask for it.

Then it says we need to treasure Gods wisdom in our hearts and boldly speak it out.

Then it tells us what to build our foundation on. It is trust in God. This is vital because if we trust God, we will follow Him. What has your trust level looked like this year? I think more than ever, I have had to trust God. The world is getting darker so we need to trust God more.

Then the verses tell us that there are 30 principles or guidelines to live by. One of these is found in verse 28 which states:

²⁸ Don’t stealthily move back the boundary lines
    staked out long ago by your ancestors.

A lot of us as we have gone through this year have found our lives really busy or maybe you have been on the opposite end and found you were lonely or even bored in this year.

My question is have we moved from those ancient boundary lines that were set by our spiritual ancestors. Those lines that were set by Jesus Himself where He changed hundreds of man made commandments to just two.

Do we live our lives with purpose on purpose loving God and loving others? How have you gone this year?

If you haven’t gone well, that’s okay. Just talk to God about it and ask Him to help you to do better.

I want to leave you with some encouragement from Ephesians 3 in the Message Bible and it reads:

I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.

^20-21 God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.

So as we go into this Christmas season, pray the above verses over yourself.

Remember that Jesus loves you and He is with you through this season.

Bless you and keep living the life God intended.

Karen