Happy New Year!

Wow! 2009 is here. Can any of you remember in gradeschool trying to work out how old you would be in 2000? Well that has been almost ten years ago :-). God has blessed us in so many ways during the past year. I will thank Him for the pain as well as the pleasures. He is so good to us.

It is great to have anticipation and excitement. Sunday School brings me a lot of excitement. So many are getting involved and helping out in the new Sunday School program that I can't help but be thrilled. We are looking for new kids and adults every day. Keep on praying and talking it up.

Our study in faithfulness resumes this Sunday with the life of Joseph. He was faithful to the plan and purpose of God. He could not see the "good" in all his circumstances at the time, but he still trusted God. He still honored the Lord with his actions and words. After going through the tests, he looked back and saw the hand of God in all of it. This challenges me to faithfully serve the Lord day by day, and trust His wisdom and power to keep me effective for Him.

Are you ready to accomplish those resolutions? What kind of resolutions do you have? Some of mine are - journaling through the year in my devotion time; losing a few pounds; spending more time praying and less time griping; writing songs; using my time better; in-depth study of Nehemiah. . . There are more, too. Having goals is important. Zig Ziglar tells the story of famous archer, Howard Hill. Hill won 196 archery tournaments in succession. He also made short films of his archery feats such as shooting aspirins from the air and hunting elephants with his bow and arrow. What made Howard Hill so effective? He had a target. Without a target, you have no Howard Hill or Annie Oakley. We also need targets to focus our energy and help us to know the next step in life.

Be in prayer. Pray for the people and items on both our Sunday School list and church list. Prayer that touches Heaven makes all the difference here on earth. Prayer also makes a big difference in our relationships with others. You might be frustrated by someone you pray for, but you can't hate or seek to harm them.

God bless you in the new year as you draw near to Him.