As our elders look forward to another year of leading, teaching and shepherding in 2024, we are faced with asking ourselves what we should be praying for the church family under our care. I can tell you that we will be praying about direction and wisdom for leading a growing congregation. We will be seeking God to keep us committed to teaching his truth and to protect us from error. We will be wondering about how best to spend our budget for the sake of the kingdom. We will be asking for God to enliven our hearts for evangelism and to save people through the testimony of our church. I'm sure you can think of many other items to add to the list. Probably one of the most pressing priorities will simply be to pray for our church family to be faithful to Jesus.
In the last section of Proverbs 4, we find an appeal for wisdom that could easily make up a wonderful focus of prayer for the church in 2024. The father (a picture of our true Father in heaven) is instructing his son in the way of wisdom and gives a general command. Proverbs 4:23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. In other words, as God's children we are instructed to guard ourselves from going the way of the world because if we let our guard down, that is exactly the way we will go. We are being told never to be complacent about how the world can affect our faith, hope, and peace that we have in Jesus. The more we allow worldly influences and pressures to impact our faith in Christ and commitment to his truth, the more we are at risk of those same influences and pressures flowing from us in direct contradiction to God's truth and grace.
The proverb continues by breaking down the general command into specific areas that we need to guard. Proverbs 4:24-26 Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. 25 Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. 26 Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. We are to guard what we say, what we want to see, and the direction we want to go. None of these can be guarded if we are not also guarding how we think. Surely, that is why we are told not just to avoid a specific direction but to truly ponder our path. We are to give serious consideration as to whether our direction in life is matching the godly path God wills for our life.
The proverb ends with summarizing the pinpoint focus we are called to as those who walk in the wisdom of God. Proverbs 4:27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil. Keep on the straight path with a focus on one direction.
In his perfect wisdom, Jesus said something similar.
Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
The writer of Hebrews also defines exactly where we should be looking in order not to swerve away from faithful wisdom. Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
So, yes, my prayer for Grace and Truth Church for 2024 will be prioritized in this way. That we would be faithful to God in guarding our hearts in a world of temptation and that we will do it by not looking right or left but keeping our eyes focused on Christ as our eternal prize.
My prayer is that we don't just pray this but live it.
Faithful New Year, GTCC!