WIC The Good News Letter
P age 1
The January Good News Letter Check out our website at www.westindependencechurch.org
FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK I hope everyone had refreshing and renewing Christmas and New Year celebrations. It’s a bit of a downer when Christmas is over, but in the church calendar the celebration continues! Christmas is a season of twelve days, lasting until the January 6th Epiphany observance. In fact, this season is where the famous carol, “The 12 days of Christmas,” derives its name. The time of the New Year is also perfect for thinking of goals and resolutions to aspire to. Two steps in this pursuit have proven immensely helpful in avoiding the common occurrence of giving up on them too soon. First, make the goal specific. For example, if the goal is to read more books, naming the specific number to read. Second, have a specific strategy to accomplish it. Again, with the reading-goal example, committing to read a certain amount of books per week or month. We all want to succeed in our goals, and the most important aspect of goal setting is to seek the wisdom of God in His Word and prayer. The first two Sundays in January the messages will be on Godly Success. What do we find in the scripture in terms of how God defines success? How much does Godly success differ from worldly success? We'll consider these questions and hopefully, prayerfully lay a foundation of success for 2024. The last two Sundays in January we will begin a series called Blueprint for Holiness. This series will cover some of the basics of the biblical theme of holy living. The Bible explains what holy living is, the essence of which is a transformed life in Christ. It’s not that we are trying to achieve an unattainable goal on this side of heaven, living perfectly holy lives. Rather, we’ll look at how we are called to live in such a way that points to Jesus Christ through holy living in how God defines it. My prayer is that we enter the new year with a sense of anticipation at how God is leading us to succeed in His eyes, and strive for the holiness that promotes Him.
“Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14 New Year's Blessings,
Pastor Ben