A new year, a new chance to focus on priorities that will make a difference. What will you resolve to do with 2019?
Most resolutions are quite predictable – lose weight, exercise more, and quit smoking are all in the top ten. Watch less TV or limit social media might be in there for most people, too. Almost all resolutions revolve around trying to use our resources in better ways.
We would like to encourage you to have some kingdom-focused resolutions. What might you focus on this year, beginning right now, that would advance the kingdom?
Pray around the world. Probably the best resource for this is Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org/). They list every country in the world along with statistics related to it and to the kingdom. It helps us pray knowledgeably for people we’ve never met. Oh, and don’t forget to pray for more harvesters, too!
Connect personally with a missionary supported by your church. Most missionaries get very little communication from people that know them back in their home country. Encourage them today by sending them an email or connecting with them in some other way.
Consider supporting a missionary financially. This doesn’t have to be a lot of money. God can take a small amount and multiply it. Consider the loaves and the fishes, and the teaching moment when disciples watched the widow give her two only pennies. If you don’t know a missionary already, your local church leadership could suggest someone.
Engage someone from a different culture. Choose someone in your community with whom you can continue the relationship. Begin by just starting up a conversation and work toward inviting them to your home for a meal.
Commit to getting to know people, those who are regularly in your life like the barista at your coffee shop or the cashier where you get groceries. Find out who they are and what they are going through. Pray for them regularly.
Pick one of the above and try to stick with it. We will join you. Even just one act of kindness can change someone’s day… or someone’s life. As you make yourself available to God, he will use you.
Happy New Year!