Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness. And rivers in the desert- Isaiah 43:18-19 NKJV

 The book of Ecclesiastes teaches God has written eternity on every human heart (Ecclesiastes 3:11). This is just a fancy-pants way of saying that all humans have a gut-level understanding our days numbered. As a result, most individuals have an almost instinctual longing to make the most of the time they have been given.  

In order to assist us in making the most of our time God has also designed rhythms to life.  Morning and evening, springtime and harvest, birth and death are repetitious patterns that remind us of the brevity of life and teach us to order our days in such a way they matter in the grand scheme of life and eternity (Genesis 8:22, Psalm 90:12, James 4:14). The first month of every year is another God-ordained rhythm of life. January is a yearly opportunity to reflect on the past and consider how we can make an impact on our world in the coming year. There is no end to the advice given on how to make each day count. Most advice is focused entirely on improving one’s eating habits, losing weight, making more money and improving one’s overall level of happiness. There is nothing inherently wrong or sinful with any of those things 

However.

Christians are commanded to live for more than their personal health, financial wellbeing and even their own personal happiness and pleasure. Christians are called to be transformed into the image of Jesus, to love God and people and to bring others into relationship with Jesus (Matthew 22: 34-40, Matthew 28:16-20, Romans 12:1-2, 2nd Corinthians 3:18). The following seven attitudes and habits are a spiritual game changer that will empower you to fulfill that calling:

Commit each day to the Lord-

If you make a practice of committing each day to the Lord before you do anything else (drink coffee, get out of bed, think about or plan your day) it will be a game-changer (Psalm 37:5-6). I promise.

Know who you belong to and what that means- 

If you are a follower of Jesus in a very real sense your life is not your own. You are literally the legal property of Almighty God (1st Corinthians 6:20, 1st Corinthians 7:23, 2nd Peter 2:1).  Christians are most content and make the biggest impact on others (and eternity) when understand and embrace this reality. Walking daily in the knowledge of who we belong to frees us up to fulfill our ultimate purpose of pleasing Jesus and bringing others into the kingdom (Matthew 10:6-8, Matthew 25:33-35, Luke 9:60, Ephesians 5:6). 

Surrender-

Every Christian—no matter how long they have been a Christian has a “thing” in their life. It might be a habit, a relationship, an attitude, a sexual proclivity, or maybe a love of money or some other worldly thing. Whatever, IT is, it will hold us back from our next big leap of growth and maturity.  One critical aspect of spiritual health and impacting our sphere of influence for Jesus is figuring out what our thing is and then letting go of it so God can work through us (Hebrews 12:1, Galatians 5:13-25)

Regular self-evaluation-

The key to spiritual growth is ultimately super boring. Our growth is determined by our spiritual habits and practices. The habits and practices we adopt around Bible reading, prayer, church attendance and self-examination determine our spiritual maturity and usefulness. Start with an inventory: What does your prayer life look like? Do you read the Bible routinely? Do you get anything out of your Bible reading?  How often do you attend church? If you pray less than a half hour a day, don’t read your Bible at least four days a week, attend church less than three times a month or aren’t getting anything out of your Bible reading, I guarantee you your spiritual habits and practices are holding you back (Hebrews 10:25, 1st Thessalonians 5:17, Matthew 26:14, Hebrews 4:12-13, 2nd Corinthians 13:5). If you want to make a spiritual impact you will have to change them. 

Be open to the Holy Spirit- 

Being open to the Holy Spirit is not about being weird. It’s about spiritual awareness and being open to God’s leading at all times (Galatians 5:16). In Acts three Peter and John passed a crippled beggar as they entered the Temple mount. The beggar asked for money, instead of giving him money they healed him in the name of Jesus (Acts 3:1-10). Peter and John doubtless passed dozens of beggars before they engaged with that one. Why? Because they were open to, in tune with and willing to be led by God in everything. So, when God said “that one” they knew exactly who He meant and what to do. We become open to the leading of the Holy Spirit through a combination of prayer, obedience and knowledge of the Bible. 

Pray on the armor of God- 

Life is becoming increasingly complex and scary because we are living in a world at war (Ephesians 6:10-13, Daniel 10:7-14) and the war is heating up (2nd Timothy 3:1-5, 2nd Peter 3:3-4) Ephesians 6:14-18 gives us the tools we need to protect ourselves, pray effectively and impact our world for Jesus. For an example of how to pray through Ephesians 6:10-18 click this link:  https://lisamargretprice.com/2020/02/03/ephesians-6-prayer/

And finally, 

We must make spiritual community a reality. Church is not optional for Jesus followers. Without Christian relationships and the spiritual stability godly people bring to our lives everything else on the list becomes a challenge. When we have a healthy spiritual community, we have the support and help we need to make every one of our days count for eternity.