Be thoughtful, prayerful, and intentional

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “A fresh start in a new year”

Our Bible verse for today: “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it?” Luke 14:28 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Be thoughtful, prayerful, and intentional”

I don’t remember where I first came across this statement but I do know it spoke to me powerfully, to the point that I have remembered it for a long time. It also served to reinforce my strong belief in the importance of making resolutions and plans. The statement reads, “A wise person asks, ‘Does the path I’m walking lead to a place I want to go? If I keep walking this way, will I like where I arrive?”

It’s an important question. If you keep eating the way you eat now, and if you continue to make excuses for not exercising, what will the condition of your health be five years from now; in ten years? Is the path you’re walking in terms of diet and exercise leading you to an outcome you want? Will you like it when that day comes?

In terms of finances, if you keep spending the way you spend now, and if you don’t get better at budgeting and saving, what will your financial situation be in five years, or in ten? Will that be the outcome you wanted? Or perhaps, should you learn and incorporate better money management practices now so your situation will be better then?

Will your current habits lead you to the future you want? You can apply that question to a wide range of life issues.

In Luke 14:28 Jesus was teaching a lesson about being thoughtful and intentional regarding the decisions we make and the actions we take. In that specific case, He was speaking to those who were considering following Him. He cautioned them to think it through, consider where that path would lead, and make sure that was the life they were seeking and that they were willing to pay the price for that choice. That was the specific context, but the larger principle applies to all of life. Be thoughtful, prayerful, and intentional about the path you are walking because it is leading you somewhere and to something. Will you like it once you get there?

The reason we make New Years resolutions is because we recognize there are things in our life that need to be different. We make resolutions because we want life to be better. Are you ready to make some changes for the better? So am I. Tomorrow we will begin.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00, in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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