Tag Archives: new year

January 1, 2025 · 5:42 AM

New Year’s Prayer 2025

The tradition for my site is to start off each year with a prayer you can pray over your life for the upcoming year.

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for bringing me into a new year that will bring new opportunities. As I move forward, open my eyes to see your hand at work in my life over the last year. Bring healing to my life in the areas that are broken, strengthen the roots that go down deep into your truths and hide me in the shadow of your wings as I trust in your faithful promises. Make your Word come alive in me this year as you reveal yourself to me through it. Open my eyes and ears to see your hand at work in my life and to hear your voice more clearly. Help me to read the Bible with renewed zeal for you, and hide it deep in my heart so that the Holy Spirit can teach me and guide me with it.

I ask that you war against any enemy who would come against me and the plan you have for my life this year. Unplug the wells of blessings that the enemy has stopped up. Cover my mind with the Helmet of Salvation. Use it to block out the lies that cause me to think less of myself than you created me to be. Apply the Breastplate of Righteousness over my vital organs so that my heart and all that I am fully trusts in you and your plan. Wrap your Belt of Truth around me to keep me trusting in you. Let me walk in peace this year wherever I go. Cover me with the Shield of Faith. Use it to block all the fiery darts the enemy tries to throw at me. Turn each accusation and attempt from the enemy into a blessing and a stepping stone that bring blessings instead of curses.

Help me to have dominion over the territory you have given me. I want to work in partnership with you in all that you have entrusted to me. Give me wisdom to multiply all that you place in my hands as you multiply the harvest of the seeds I sow. Help me to expand my territory, my influence and my resources. Give me ideas on how to have dominion over my thoughts, my health, my growth and my finances. Let this be the year where I see your promises fulfilled in my life. Bring to pass what you have spoken over me. Make your path clear to me as you open doors that enemy has tried to shut. Help me to overcome the temptation of trying to go through doors you have closed. Use me in any way you see fit this year. I yield myself to you and your plan. Thank you for all you are going to do this next year.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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January 2, 2024 · 8:26 AM

Setting Godly Goals

What would have to happen this year for you to consider it a successful year? Have you thought about that? What is your definition of success? Most of us immediately tie success to our jobs, but what about success in your relationships, spiritual growth or even with your family? You’ve probably got some ideas of things you’d like to accomplish in the different areas of your life, but unless you set proper goals with an actionable plan, those thoughts are really just dreams with very little hope of being fulfilled.

Proverbs 21:5 says, “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty” (NLT). The Bible is clear that we must make plans, set goals and do the work if we’re going to “build our wall” as pastor says. Planning means that we prayerfully sit down, think through processes and outcomes that we want to achieve. The results you get will be directly tied to the processes you have in your life. You must be faithful in the little details if you expect God to give you more. Shortcuts won’t get you to where God wants to take you. All His promises have processes that we must go through. He has goals and plans for your life. Do yours line up with His?

Set some God sized goals this year that can’t be achieved unless He intervenes. Put in place processes that will help you stay on track throughout the year. What needs to happen between now and the end of January for you to be on your way? Who do you need to talk to you about your plans and who can hold you accountable? Each of us have to push past the fear, turn a deaf ear to the “what if’s” and step out in faith. The key to reaching your goals in most cases is “Go. Set. Ready.” You will never feel like you’re ready or set enough. God always requires us to take the first step. What will yours be in each of the areas God wants to grow you this year?

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December 30, 2022 · 5:30 AM

Seasons Change

I’m taking this week off to spend time with family. I hope you enjoy this previously written devotional.

One of the things I’ve learned about life is that it’s full of seasons. There are seasons of plenty, dry seasons, seasons of doubt, seasons of pain, seasons of just enough, seasons of recovery, etc. There’s no rhyme or reason as to when they show up or how long they’ll last, but one thing is certain, they do pass. The worst seasons seem like they’ll never end and the good seasons seem to go by too fast. I believe that God will give us what we need for each season, and that each season is a time of preparation.

If God uses seasons to prepare us, then I believe that you can be fruitful no matter what the season is in your life. You can glean from each season of your life things that will grow you and produce fruit for the future. You may be looking at your life right now and see a desert wasteland, but Isaiah 43:19 says that God is about to do something new. He’ll make rivers in the desert so that you can produce fruit and grow. No matter how dark life gets or how abundant your blessings are, God has a design and a purpose to grow you through this season.

Here are some Bible verses on different seasons of life.

1. He will be standing firm like a flourishing tree planted by God’s design, deeply rooted by the brooks of bliss, bearing fruit in every season of his life. He is never dry, never fainting, ever blessed, ever prosperous.

Psalms 1:3 TPT

2. Be cheerful with joyous celebration in every season of life. Let joy overflow, for you are united with the Anointed One!

Philippians 4:4 TPT

3. And don’t allow yourselves to be weary or disheartened in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you’ve planted is coming!

Galatians 6:9 TPT

4. But I keep calling out to you, Yahweh! I know you will bend down to listen to me, for now is the season of favor. Because of your faithful love for me, your answer to my prayer will be my sure salvation.

Psalms 69:13 TPT

5. You’ve so graciously provided for my essential needs during this season of difficulty.

Philippians 4:14 TPT

Photo by Chris Lawton on Unsplash

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December 31, 2021 · 5:42 AM

Continue Growing

Every new year we begin to think of new habits we want to adopt in our lives. We’re encouraged to think this way from ads and people. However, let’s think a little differently this year. Don’t just focus on what new habit or goal you want to add. Think of, and identify, things you need to continue doing. There are plants of things you’re doing well right now. Don’t neglect those things or overlook them. Growth happens when we build on a foundation we already have. Be careful not to drop something productive that you’re already doing when you try to introduce something new.

Here are some Bible verses on things we should continue doing.

1. In the same way you received Jesus our Lord and Messiah by faith, continue your journey of faith, progressing further into your union with him!

Colossians 2:6 TPT

2. But as for you, continue in the truths that you were taught and firmly believe.

2 Timothy 3:14 GNT

3. But we will [continue to] devote ourselves [steadfastly] to prayer and to the ministry of the word.

Acts 6:4 AMP

4. Don’t envy sinners, but always continue to fear the Lord.

Proverbs 23:17 NLT

5. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:8 NLT

Photo by Austin Kehmeier on Unsplash

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January 1, 2019 · 5:58 AM

New Years Prayer 2019

Lord,

I thank you for this new year and all the blessings you will bring into my life during it. Give me the wisdom to make the best decisions for my life this year so that I follow your plan for my life. I know that this year will have moments where I can’t see your hand at work where I don’t understand what you’re doing in my life. Help my unbelief in those moments and strengthen my resolve to trust in you no matter what. I know that you see the bigger picture for my life and that you have a plan that is for my good.

As Hebrews 12:14 says, help me to be swift to choose peace over competition in every relationship. I also want to run towards holiness in my life. I want to reflect your Son in the things I say and do this year. Let your light shine brightly through me so that I point others to you instead of to me. Help me to achieve the potential you see in me and to fulfill all that you have for me to do in this coming year. I know there are greater things in store for my life. Give me the courage to follow where you lead me.

As Hebrews 12:15 says, help me to make sure that no one I come into contact with misses the revelation of your grace. Protect me from any root of bitterness that may try to spring up in my life. I want to live in your peace and have your compassion flowing through my life. Whatever you are dreaming of doing this year, I want to be a part of making that happen. I submit my will, and the plans I have, to yours. Let 2019 be the year where I do more for you than I ever have. Put people in my life to help me accomplish all you have for me to do, and people that I can strengthen and help as well. Open my eyes to see others the way you do and help me to love them with your love.

I ask all these things in Jesus’ name.

Amen

Photo by Steve Halama on Unsplash

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January 2, 2017 · 5:16 AM

2017 New Year’s Prayer


As is my custom for this site, here is a prayer for the new year that you can pray and make your own. I pray God’s blessings on your life this year.

Dear Heavenly Father,

We worship you and thank you for a new year. We thank you for the new mercies, greater grace, and fuller life that it will bring. May it be a year full of your favor in our lives. Keep your hand of blessing on us so that we can bless others. Open up doors that have been closed in the past. Lead us beside still water so that our souls are refreshed this year. Bring restoration to the parts of our lives that have been shattered and broken.

You alone are our strong foundation. You are the One we build our lives on. May we see growth and progress spiritually, financially, and emotionally in 2017. We know that you are good, and that you have good things for us. We give you the freedom to move and work in our lives this year as you see fit. Your plan for our lives is better than any plan we could ever come up with. We submit to you, your plans, and your goals for our lives.

Help us to have enough oil in our lamps to do the work you’ve called us to. Put the right people in our lives to stir up your gifts inside us, to move us in the direction you would have us go, and to maximize our potential. Help us to add value to our friends, family, and those who cross our path this year. Give us God ideas on how to build others up so they are rightfully restored to the people you created them to be.

Give us greater wisdom in all areas of our life so we make better choices this year. Give us discernment so we can know your voice, your path, and your direction in our lives. May this be a year of tremendous growth, productivity, and expansion for us and your Kingdom. Use us to spread your light, your life, and your compassion so that you will be lifted up and people will be drawn to you. Thank you in advance for all you’re going to do, and we give you all the honor and glory as we dedicate this year to you. 

In Jesus name we pray,

Amen!

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December 30, 2016 · 5:38 AM

Renewal And Restoration 


As each year ends, we are usually glad it’s over hoping the new year brings change, or we had a great year and hope the next one brings more of the same. Whatever next year holds, it’s not going to be a surprise to God. We don’t have to be afraid or overwhelmed by what’s coming. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind (II Timothy 1:7). He has also given us enough grace that is sufficient for whatever we will face.

I believe 2017 will be a year of renewal. God wants to take those things in our lives that we’ve given up on, broken, or forgotten and bring them back to life. He wants to renew a right spirit within us that is ready to receive all He has for us. No matter what world events take place, our God is still in control. We can trust Him with our hopes, our dreams, our future, and with our brokenness. Give God the freedom to do on your life what He wants to do next year and you won’t be disappointed.  

Here are some Bible verses on renewal and restoration.

1. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
Psalms 51:10 NLT

2. Restore us, O LORD, and bring us back to you again! Give us back the joys we once had!
Lamentations 5:21 NLT

3. I’ll refresh tired bodies; I’ll restore tired souls.
Jeremiah 31:25 MSG

4. The LORD will sustain him upon his sickbed; In his illness, You restore him to health.
Psalms 41:3 NASB

5. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.
Ephesians 4:23 NLT

6. But those who trust in the Lord for help will find their strength renewed. They will rise on wings like eagles; they will run and not get weary; they will walk and not grow weak.
Isaiah 40:31 GNT

7. Restore us again, O God; and cause Your face to shine [in pleasure and approval on us], and we shall be saved!
Psalm 80:3 AMPC

8. But if you pray to God and seek the favor of the Almighty, and if you are pure and live with integrity, he will surely rise up and restore your happy home. And though you started with little, you will end with much.
Job 8:5-7 NLT

9. Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.
Acts 3:19 NASB

10. He makes me lie down in [fresh, tender] green pastures; He leads me beside the still and restful waters. [Rev. 7:17.] He refreshes and restores my life (my self); He leads me in the paths of righteousness [uprightness and right standing with Him–not for my earning it, but] for His name’s sake.
Psalm 23:2-3 AMPC

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January 1, 2016 · 12:00 AM

2016 New Year’s Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank for the start of a new year and a new chapter in my life. Help me to make the most out of this year by focusing on the things you want me to focus on. I ask that you would put people in my life that would draw me closer to you and to the will that you have for my life. For my existing friends, let us mutually stir up the gifts you’ve placed inside each of us so that we will love you and serve you the way we were intended to.

This past year had victories and losses. Teach me to be humble in victory and forgiving in defeat. Help me to let go of past hurt so that no root of bitterness will spring up. Give me the grace to forgive others and the courage to speak truth in love. I want to be a reflection of your Son Jesus who was full of grace and truth. I want to be able to be free by letting go of the things that don’t matter so I can hold on to the blessings you’re going to bring into my life this year.

I ask that 2016 would be a year of blessing. Open up the windows of Heaven and pour them out on my life and into the lives of my family and friends. I know that every good and perfect comes down from you, and I’m asking you to rain down those gifts this year. Help us not to hoard the gifts you give, but to use them to glorify you and to make you known. Whatever you give to me, you can get through me to whomever you please.

This year, I want to act justly, love mercy, and to walk humbly with you. I want to live this year better than I did last year. I want to give you more of my time, my resources, and my talents. I want 2016 to be the year I hold nothing back from you. I want to experience unparalleled growth in my life, in my relationships, and in my walk with you. I’m asking that you create rivers in the desert and open doors that have been shut. Show me the paths you want me to walk down so when 2017 comes around, I’ll be where you need me to be.

I give 2016 to you. I want what you want for me this year. Help me to lay aside my desires for the year and to embrace your desires. Give me strength to do what you have called me to do. Give me courage to go where you’ve called me to go. Give me ears that hear your voice and eyes that see your path. Keep me from turning to the right or the left, and help me to stay focused on you. May 2016 be known as the year of your blessing in my life. I trust you to do what I’ve asked because I’ve prayed according to your will.

In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen 

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December 28, 2015 · 6:29 AM

Risk Everything

  

With one year winding down and another about to begin, I think it’s always good to look back and reflect on the previous year. Ask yourself, “What went well? What do I wish would have happened differently? What changes do I need to make to have a better year next year?” You may be able to answer the first two pretty quickly, but take your time on the third. I would even recommend fasting and prayer so that you do the right things to get the right result.

When you read the story of Esther, you find that in the first month of the year, Haman sent out a decree to kill all Jews. Her first response was that she couldn’t do anything to change the course of her fate. She opted to stay silent and do nothing out of fear. What her uncle Moredecai knew was that if she did nothing, she would reap the consequences of doing nothing. If there was going to be a change, it required her to do what she had never done. It required great risk.

If you want a greater change in your life, you’re going to have to take a great risk. You can only guess what will result from the changes you make. Esther knew this too. That’s why she didn’t do it without seeking God first and having others pray with her. In Esther 4:16, she sent word to Moredecai saying, “Go and gather together all the Jews of Susa and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will do the same. And then, though it is against the law, I will go in to see the king. If I must die, I must die” (NLT).

She was willing to risk everything to change everything, but she wasn’t willing to do it without fasting and prayer. If you feel like a major change is needed in your life next year, let me encourage you to seek God through fasting and prayer. Ask Him what you need to risk and change so He can do the miraculous for you. Ask Him to open doors that seem shut. Then, you will have to do what Esther did and take that step of faith that God asks you to do. Esther saved her people, not just because she prayed, but because she took a risk and went before the king uninvited.

I don’t know what stepping in front of a king looks like for you, but God can reveal it to you though fasting and prayer. Hebrews 11 is a chapter that reminds us of people who stepped out in faith and risked everything. They are the ones in the Bible who trusted God above all else, and they took risks without knowing they would get the reward. Verse 6 says, “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” If you will have faith and seek God, He will reward your faith.

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January 1, 2015 · 2:30 AM

A New Year’s Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for all of the blessings you gave me last year. I don’t always stop and say, “Thanks,” when you give them to me. Partly because I forget to and partly because I don’t always recognize them. I know that you bring things into my life and take them out as part of your plan. I confess that I don’t always understand your plan so I don’t always agree with what you do. This year, I pray that you open my eyes to see your plan better and help me to accept it even though I may not understand it.

As I look back on the past year, there were a lot of victories, but there were also significant losses. At times, I was broken to the point where I couldn’t see your hand in the situations. I didn’t know if I could go on, but you were faithful to stand by my side in the darkest valley. Your Holy Spirit was my comforter and my encourager. You lifted my head and gave me the strength to get back up. In the coming year, I pray that you would be my guide through valleys and mountain tops. Lead me where you want me to go and I will follow.

As this new year starts, I want to recommit my whole self to you. I give you my heart, my soul, my past, my present and my future. I can’t change the things that have happened in the past, but I can give you control over how I think about them. Help me to walk in your freedom this year. Remove any chains that are holding me back and help me to strip off any weights that are slowing me down. I want to be free to serve the way you want me to. I want to live this year for your purpose so I can find more of mine.

I don’t know what this year will bring, but to you, it’s already history. You know each step I will take. I pray that you will use your Word to be a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Give me the courage to step out in faith when you call me and the patience to stand still as I wait to hear your voice. My desire is to be more obedient to your will this year than in any other year of my life. I know that’s not an easy thing to do, but when the next year rolls around I want you to be able to say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

I pray that you will continue to bless me and my family so that we can be a blessing to others. I pray that you would use us to do the miraculous and to be the answer to the prayers of others. May your light shine through our lives brighter than ever so that when people see us, they see you. Help us to be a reflection of you through our words and actions. Use us to point others to the cross and to encourage them through your Word. We give you permission to do with our lives this year as you see fit. Make us a city on a hill that can’t be hidden and salt that brings flavor to the world if those we connect with.

In the name of jesus I pray,

Amen.

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