Opportunities

The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.
Luke 18:27

It’s hard to believe that we are coming to the end of another year and a new year and decade are beginning. This time of year always prompts us to stop, take stock, and look back at all our blessings from the past year. As I thought back over the year of 2019, I asked myself, “What is the greatest gift God has given me this year?” In counting all the blessings, it occurred to me that the biggest gift this year has been opportunities. God has opened so many doors and offered so many ways to glorify Him through so many different avenues.

This is not to imply that I’ve done everything I could have done in the past year, it’s just a starting point. Thomas Edison said, “If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we’d astound ourselves.”

This is the time of year for resolutions, commitments, and promises. Years ago, Randy did the Prayer of Jabez for his New Years Resolution because Jabez dared to ask God for great things and believed God would do great things. He wrote out the prayer and placed it above his study desk so that each day he could pray it. The prayer is simple, Oh that You would bless me indeed, that You would enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain. It can be found in 1 Chronicles 4:10. Since we cannot out ask God or out dream God, it seems a great start to the New Year to ask for what we want, and believe that God will give it to us.

I love that Jabez wanted God to “enlarge his territory” because as long as our horizons are expanding, we will be spiritually and emotionally happy. When we ask to have our territory enlarged, it has to be something new – unfamiliar land. We can’t be satisfied to start this new year as we have started others with the same resolutions, the same plans, the same habits, and the same land. This year we need to dream big!

Jabez also asked God to be with him because he realized that if he got more territory, he would have more responsibility which would require even more of God’s help. As we prosper in our lives, sometimes we think we need God less, but the truth is, we need Him more.

He asked God to keep him from evil and not cause anyone pain. Jabez needed God’s protection as we all do. The more successful we are, the more critics we have; the more critics we have, the more people will attack us; the more people who attack us, the more we need God. When God is closer, we can be sure that we have nothing or no one to fear. We have the opportunity to do great things.

My wish for all of us is that 2020 would be a year filled with opportunites, expansion, and big dreams!

Happy New Year!