Day 1: A New Year's Prayer Solution

*I thank you Pastor Daniel for compiling articles from resources into a booklet, so that this booklet will change the lives of people, and be used for the expansion of God's wonderful Kingdom. It was not by coincidence that was presented with this wonderful booklet, "21". Following is the first article in the book written by Lane Palmer. "Day 1: New Year's Prayer Solution"


"Teach us to make the most of out time, so that we may grow in wisdom.' (Psalms 90:12)



Are you two-faced? Maybe we all are at some point. But did you know that the word 'January' refers to a two-faced Roman deity; one face looking back at the past and one face looking towards the future.


This would be a great time to be doing the same....looking back at the previous year and looking forward to the year ahead.


The past...to many that is a scary phrase. This year in review brings back guilt anew. The sorrows, sins and silly slip-ups get in your face and haunt you like a re-occurring nightmare. So looking back over 2008 would be about as fun as being dragged over wounded scorpions. Yet I would still encourage you to do so for this reason: grace. If you peer hard enough into your accumulated memories, you will find the fnger-prints of God over all your botches and blunders-and the finger that left the prints is pointing towards forgiveness and restoration. Remember that Jesus is the God of secong chances (and third, fourth, fifth, etc.) Learn from your mistakes and move on- that's what the Apostle Paul did:

"Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us up to heaven." ~ Phillipians 3:13-14


Paul was a lot like us. He looked back and saw things he was proud of, and things he was ashamed of. Yet rather than revel and grovel in obsessive observations, he made a decision to employ a wonderful technique for dealing with the past: forgetting.

Remember the other face? It looks towards the future. Not in a ridiculous and useless resolution sort of way, but in a dedicated and determined fashion that takes seriously the high calling of being a believer left on this planet to advance God's Kingdom one day and one life at a time- because each day is a gift.

Here is the prayer of an African pastor who was later killed for his faith. May Christ give you the grace to have it profoundly affect the way 2009 unfolds:

I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His and I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future is secure. I'm done and finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, or tops, or recognize, or praise, or rewarded. I live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit power.

My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my guide is reliable and my mission is clear.

I will not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded, or delayed.

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I won't give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ.

I am a disciple of Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He does come for His own, He'll have no problem recognizing me. My colors will be clear!!


Wow! Isn't this just wonderful? A determined and passionate pastor that is determined to go all out for God. We should be like him, and take up the buffalo spirit and unite against Satan for the safetyness of the rising up for our generation. It is our job to keep sending Satan back to Hell!

Stand for the world or Fall for the world.

Thank you, Lord.

Sincerely,
Leon Lim Jake-Li.