Grace and Peace in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

 

Welcome to the new year 2023. The theme that the Lord has given me for this year is, “Stop making excuses and make some adjustments!” Making excuses can hinder our lives in many ways. Excuses tend to make us slow down and sometimes make us stagnate in our everyday lives. They make us complacent and keep us from meeting our goals and accomplishing important achievements. God has a lot for us to do this year.

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There are a few reasons why some people tend to make excuses. One is fear. People have fear of the unknown. 2 Timothy 1:7 says that God has not give us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind. Another reason is laziness. Proverbs 13:4 says that the soul of a lazy man desires and has nothing, but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. Another reason that some people make excuses is they have contrite spirits. The Bible says in Leviticus 26:27-28 that if we will not hearken unto God and continue to be contrary, He will be contrary to us and chastise us.

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In 2023, we must have a made up mind. We have to be determined to continue to move forward at all cost. We have to be confident in knowing that God will not leave or forsake us. We have to know that God has a plan for our lives and as long as we stay in His will, we win! We have to get to the point that nothing can stop us on our journey.

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I leave you with three scriptures to take with you throughout this year:

 

1. “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” -- Romans 8:38-39 KJV

2. “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” -- Philippians 3:13-14 KJV

3. “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” -- Philippians 1:6 KJV