Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year

In December of 2004, I listened to my pastor give a sermon on a list of spiritual challenges for the New Year.  I never keep sermon notes from messages I hear, but five years later I still have this list.  Here it is:

“Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year”   By Donald S. Whitney

The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to stop, look up, and get our bearings. To that end, here are some questions to ask prayerfully in the presence of God.

1. What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?

2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?

3. What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this year?

4. In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it?

5. What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?

6. What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?

7. For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?

8. What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?

9. What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?

10. What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?

Copyright © 2003 Donald S. Whitney.  www.BiblicalSpirituality.org

 

The thing that stood out the most from the list in 2004 was “2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?”  At the time I was working part time at a local community theater and was getting extremely discouraged in my search for full time work.  I was also living with my Nate’s sister and brother-in-law, but was hoping to find affordable housing so that I could have my own place.  I started asking God for what seemed beyond my reach: an apartment and full time job by February.

God is good.  I randomly called a local business to see if they were hiring.  They just happened to be interviewing for a position I was qualified for.  I had an interview and job offer within less than a week.  Plus I moved into my new apartment five days after starting my new job.  God IS good!

I can’t wait to see what God has planned for 2010.

I’m not a big fan of New Year resolutions, but this year I do have a couple.  I’ll share them in a future post.