2 Corinthians 1:12

For our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conduct in this world, and more abundantly toward you. (2 Corinthians 1:12)

God is faithful, longs to speak with us, and gives a clear word for the year ahead: simplify and focus.

Ten Years In — And Still Not Sufficient of Ourselves

This day, January 4th, is an important one for me. It's the ten-year anniversary of my starting on staff at this church. When I started ten years ago — and even before that, when I was helping with the youth ministry, doing computer work, and wiring things — I had no idea what I was doing. When we first built this facility, Richard asked if I'd wire the phones and the network. I told him I didn't know how to wire anything, but he introduced me to a man who showed me the basics. About twelve years later, it's still working — though this morning, for some reason, it wasn't.

It's amazing to see how the Lord takes people who don't know what they're doing and uses them. I'm thankful Richard shared that verse from 2 Corinthians 3 this morning: that we are not sufficient of ourselves to think anything as being of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God. He is the one who makes us able ministers. There is no way the pastors and leaders of this church can do what we do in the kingdom without His help — it's God who works in us both to will and to do His good pleasure.

God Can Work Through Anyone

As Josh shared this morning's opportunities, maybe it's as simple as being an usher or a greeter, and you're thinking, "There's no way I can do that. I'm not a people person." The Lord can work in and through you to do that, and He may be calling you to it this morning. Or perhaps you say there's no possible way you'd do youth or children's ministry. When Pastor Tony asked me to teach the junior high ministry, my first thought was a resounding no, and I was going to stand strong on that no. But as I was about to say it, the words "I'll pray about it" came out of my mouth instead. Apart from the Lord, there was no possible way I could have done what He called me to do.

When I was in junior high, the Lord readied me with the thought that one day He might want me to teach His word. So I figured the best thing to do was take a speech class. I was horrible at it — and I believe the Lord had me take it to prove to me how absolutely horrible I was, to show me that I am not sufficient of myself.

Seeking a Word for 2009

At the conclusion of last week's service, I mentioned that each new year I seek the Lord and ask Him to give me a word — sometimes a verse, sometimes an entire passage, other times a single word. Years ago this was completely personal. Then God added a wife to the equation, then a son, and then this church. Now it's: "Lord, what do you want to speak to me for myself, my wife, my son, and the church?"

Ten years ago, at winter camp right at this time, I asked the Lord what He wanted as I started on staff. The key thing He told me to do was to keep my mouth shut, watch, and listen. That was hard for me — I bet you don't believe that — but I learned a lot as I stayed quiet and observed and listened to how the Lord would speak.

A Year of Change — But Be Not Troubled

This is a year of much change. We're seeing a change of administration in a couple of weeks, and I believe we'll see continued secularization in our nation. I'm no prophet; I'm simply looking around. We're moving into a society that will be even more secular, drifting further from God. We're looking at a world in upheaval — another war in Israel, with the ground offensive into Gaza beginning last night around 8:30 p.m. Israeli time. Jerusalem will continue to become more and more of a cup of trembling.

Scripture says there will be wars and rumors of wars, and Jesus tells us: see that you be not troubled. These are the beginning of birth pains. It will get worse. That shouldn't scare us too much, but it should give us a proper reverence and remind us that our hope rests in the fact that the sufferings of this present world are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us. I have no doubt the economy hasn't seen the worst of it yet, and for some of you that's fearful. But that brings us back to that verse Pastor Richard shared — our sufficiency is of Christ. He is the one we lean upon and trust.

Proverbs 27:1 tells us we're not guaranteed tomorrow. If the church's prayer is answered — "Lord, come quickly" — maybe we won't even make it to tomorrow, and I'd hope for that. But even so, as Rob said, quoting Martin Luther: even if the Lord comes back tomorrow, we're going to plant the tree today. The Lord still has work for us.

Three Things to Recognize as You Seek Him

I want to encourage you to seek the Lord and ask Him to speak to you. January 1st clicks in our minds as a time to start fresh, though you could start with a clean slate any day. James tells us it's foolish to say, "We'll go to such and such a city and make money," because we don't even know what will happen tomorrow. Instead we should ask, "Lord, what do you will?"

First, God is always faithful. Moses says in Deuteronomy 7 that the Lord your God, He is the faithful God — not merely a faithful God, but the only faithful God. People trust in many things — medication, finances, a job — and whatever you exalt above God becomes a god to you. Those things fail. Just as God shook the gods of Egypt in Isaiah 19, He will shake whatever else you're trusting in during 2009, because He wants His church to trust in Him alone. Paul says it in 1 Corinthians 1:9, in 1 Corinthians 10:13, and in 2 Timothy 2: even if we are faithless, God remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself. Aren't you thankful for that? Remember the father in Matthew 17 whose son was demon-possessed. Jesus said, "All things are possible to him who believes," and the man said, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief." Even when our faith is small, Jesus is still faithful.

God Desires Intimate Communication

Second, God desires intimate, relational communication with you. Consider how far Jesus went so that you and I could have that kind of fellowship. He tore down the middle wall of separation and opened the veil through His work on the cross. That same verse, 1 Corinthians 1:9, says God is faithful, "by whom you were called unto the fellowship of His Son."

Communion involves communication, and it can't be one-sided. We all know how awkward it is to hear only one side of an important phone call, or to be stuck in a one-sided conversation. God desires two-way fellowship with us. In John 17:20–21 Jesus prays not only for the disciples but for all who would believe through their word — that's you and me — that we would be one with Him. Throughout Scripture God desires to dwell in the midst of His people, and the New Testament reveals our hope: Christ in us, the hope of glory, not for one people group but for the whole world (Colossians 1:27).

God Wants Us to Know and Walk in His Will

Third, God wants us to know and walk in His will. If I told you I wanted to fellowship with you and invited you to my house, but then walked away without telling you how to get there, you'd doubt I really meant it. The Lord wants intimate fellowship with us and wants us one day to be in His house, in His kingdom — don't you think He wants you to know how to get there and to know His will?

I meet people all the time who say they're "searching for God's will," as though He hid it from them under a rock. I teach at the Bible college in Marietta and interact with students in their fourth semester, about to graduate. I ask, "What is the Lord calling you to do?" "I don't know, I'm just waiting on God's will." "What is He showing you?" "I don't know, I'm just waiting." It's as if they expect God to show up at the dorm door.

We need to recognize that God primarily reveals His will through His word. As I abide in His word, I am wise to His will. And as I walk in His will, He reveals more still. As I fulfill what He has told me to do and obey what's written, He opens more doors. There's that old hymn: "When we walk with the Lord in the light of His word, what a glory He sheds on our way... Trust and obey, for there's no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey." Much of God's will is already revealed in His word — passages like 1 Thessalonians where it plainly says, "This is the will of God." And as we walk in that, He begins to open doors before us, day by day, step by step.

The Word for the Year: Simplify and Focus

As I asked the Lord what He wanted to do in 2009, the word that kept overlapping in my mind, like a record player going over and over, was focus. Focus is concentrated effort or attention on a particular thing. Verses came to mind — Matthew 6:33, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness"; Colossians 3, "Seek those things which are above; set your mind and affection on things above, not on the things of the earth." That's fixing your focus properly.

But I realized it's very hard to focus when everything's cluttered. My office is a perfect illustration — Richard's laughing because he loves things perfectly laid out, and it drives him crazy that I straighten nothing. So a second word kept going over and over in my mind: simplify. Simplify and focus. I believe those are the words the Lord is speaking to me personally and to our church as we move into 2009.

Putting Away the Junk — Lessons from Genesis 35

There are several things I want us to do this year to help us simplify and focus, some for the ministry as a whole, some for us individually. How many of you have a lot of junk — garages you can't park in, closets and storage units full of stuff? People often tell me they wish they could get rid of it all. So this spring we want to do a "spring cleaning." We'll get a big dumpster in the parking lot, and if you've got junk, bring it down and throw it in.

Why? In Genesis 35, God spoke to Jacob: "Arise and go to Bethel" — the house of God, the place of worship — "and dwell there and make an altar." God wanted him to focus. Jacob, as priest of his household, said to his family, "Put away the strange gods from among you, and be clean, and change your garments, and let us arise and go to Bethel." He recognized they couldn't focus on worship and serve God unless they simplified and got rid of all that junk. They gave Jacob their strange gods and their earrings — signs of false worship — and he buried them under the oak at Shechem. You may have a lot of junk; this year we want to give you an opportunity to bury it.

At the same time, Kelly wants to do a rummage sale for missions, to raise money for what we're doing in China and Africa this summer. So if you've got good junk, bring it here and we'll sell it.

Simplify Financially, and Trust the Faithful God

Some of you are in a difficult financial position, wanting to move forward but weighed down by debt. This year we want to offer an opportunity — several of our leaders can help — to get on a budget, to simplify so you can focus on what God is calling you to do.

We've had to do this as a leadership too. Looking at our budget going into 2009, we've had to simplify so we can focus. God has blessed us in an awesome way; this is a giving church, and the needs shared this morning are always taken care of, every time. I know churches that missed their 2008 budget by 40%. We missed ours too — but Richard showed me this morning we missed it by only 1%. God is faithful. He meets our needs. But because we missed it, we decided we need to simplify and focus and change the way we've been doing things.

Running the Race with Endurance

When the people in Genesis 35 were unhindered by all they had gathered along the way, the Lord did miraculous and mighty things. We're going through the book of Acts this year, and God is already speaking to many of you through His word. I believe God will raise up more missionaries from this fellowship — people we can send to Rob, whom he can send somewhere else. But first we need to lay aside the weights and sins that so easily ensnare us, so we can run the race with endurance.

The Lord is coming quickly — I believe that wholeheartedly. But until He comes, may we run with endurance, looking and hoping for His coming. Next week several ministry leaders will share what God is doing and what we're looking for Him to do in the new year. We have much planned — missions, vacation Bible school, a harvest celebration, and Easter will be here before we know it. As God said to Joshua at the end of his life, "There remains much land to be possessed." There's a lot of work to do. To do it, I believe this is a year to simplify and focus, and it's my prayer that we would have this testimony: that in simplicity and godly sincerity, by grace, we have had our conduct in this world.

Closing Prayer

Father, I thank you that you are faithful and that you speak to us when we ask you to. Lord, you said, "Call to me and I will answer you, and I will show you great and mighty things that you do not know." We don't have a clue what we're doing at Calvary Chapel, but you do, and we're thankful that we can trust in you, lean upon you, and that you are faithful to guide and direct. Lord, I pray that you would continue to be the head pastor of our church, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and that we would submit to your rule, your reign, and your direction. For we ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.