As you enter a new year, settle this: eternal life is God’s gift in Jesus, and it is maintained by grace, not by your self-effort. Nothing can hack it or break your connection; God’s power is the perfect firewall. The source of your salvation is the Father’s great mercy, its duration is never ending, and its keeper is the power of God. When doubts rise, they often signal distance—draw near in the Word, prayer, and worship, and confidence returns from Him, not from your flesh. Rest in the Keeper, and then live freely for His purposes. [02:47]
1 Peter 1:3–5 — Praise to the Father, who in great mercy has given us new birth into a living hope through Jesus’ resurrection. He is holding an inheritance for us that cannot spoil, wear out, or be taken, kept in heaven with our name on it. Even now, by trusting Him, we are being guarded by God’s power until the full salvation is unveiled.
Reflection: When doubt about your salvation whispers this week, what is one concrete way you will shift your attention from self-effort to God’s keeping power, and when will you practice it?
Jesus laid the only perfect foundation, and no one can lay another. We each build on it with works that are either lasting (gold, silver, precious stones) or disposable (wood, hay, straw). The coming day will test everything with fire; useless service burns, but faithful service remains and is rewarded. Even the one with mostly useless works is saved—yet only as through fire—so why aim for “barely” when grace invites fruitful living? Let the Spirit turn trade deficits of wasted effort into investments that last. Choose faithfulness over cutting corners. [03:08]
1 Corinthians 3:10–15 — By God’s grace a wise builder laid the foundation—Jesus Christ—and others build on Him. Each must take care how they build: some use what endures, others what cannot survive. The final day will expose it by fire; what remains brings reward, what burns brings loss—yet the person themselves is saved, as if escaping through flames.
Reflection: What one recurring activity this week feels like “wood, hay, or straw” to you, and what specific act of Spirit-led service will you trade it for on your calendar?
Followers of Christ engage with Jesus up close and personal. Remaining in Him—intimacy, not performance—produces fruit and quiet confidence. When unconfessed sin becomes a lifestyle, it muzzles the Holy Spirit and you drift, start thinking like the world, and doubt what grace has settled. Turn down the volume of competing desires, and turn up prayer, Scripture, and worship. Apart from Him you can do nothing; with Him your heart rests and your life bears real fruit. [02:59]
John 15:5 — Jesus said, “I’m like a vine and you are like branches. If you stay connected to Me and I share My life with you, you’ll bear much fruit. Cut off from Me, you can’t accomplish what truly matters.”
Reflection: What “volume knob” will you turn down for seven days (news, scrolling, overtime, shopping), and what abiding practice will you turn up (undistracted 15-minute prayer, Scripture meditation, worship on a walk)? When will you start?
God’s Word is alive and active; it comforts and it cuts, guiding, encouraging, and exposing the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Encounter Him by casual reading, deeper study, and praying the Scriptures. When you are engaged in what He wants you to do, doubt loses oxygen. Take a short passage, ponder it, and pray it back to God, letting it set your agenda today. He will use His Word to draw you close and send you out. [02:33]
Hebrews 4:12 — God’s message is living and powerful, sharper than any double-edged blade. It reaches into the deepest places where soul and spirit meet, and it discerns the motives and patterns of our hearts.
Reflection: Which one short passage will you pray slowly and aloud each day this week, and what time of day will you set aside ten minutes to let it read you?
A lifestyle of worship, generosity, community, and witness flows from a living relationship, not performance. Praise the Lord for who He is, give cheerfully as one who has received much, love the brothers and sisters, and unite so each part does its work. As we speak the truth in love and serve together, we mature into Christ, and our feet become ready to carry good news. Small, Spirit-led steps open doors for the story of Jesus and your story to be shared. Let love for God’s people and love for your neighbors move you into action this week. [03:01]
Ephesians 4:15–16 — As truth is spoken with love, we grow up in every way into Christ, who is the Head. From Him the whole body is joined and held together, and as each part does its work, the body builds itself up in love.
Reflection: Name one person in your church family you will encourage or serve this week, and one neighbor or coworker with whom you will gently share a simple piece of your story about Jesus; what day and setting seem most natural?
Entering a new year, the call is to settle the most important question: Do you truly know Christ, and is your salvation secure? The foundation is Jesus Christ—laid perfectly and once for all—on which every life is built. From 1 Corinthians 3, the contrast is clear: faithful works (gold, silver, precious stones) endure and are rewarded; fleshly, self-centered efforts (wood, hay, straw) are burned. Yet even if someone’s works are largely useless, the person who is truly Christ’s is saved—though with nothing to show but grace. Eternal security rests not in personal performance, but in Christ’s finished work and the keeping power of God.
1 Peter 1 anchors assurance: salvation is an imperishable inheritance, kept by God’s power. No spiritual “hacking,” no demonic assault, no internal failure can break through God’s impenetrable keeping. Apparent problem texts must be read carefully. Hebrews 6 describes those who taste but never truly swallow—illumination without regeneration, proximity without union. Galatians 5 warns that those seeking justification by law step away from grace as a principle; whether unbeliever or misguided believer, the point is not the loss of salvation but the abandonment of grace as the operative way of life. Scripture never contradicts the Father’s mercy, the Son’s sufficiency, or the Spirit’s sealing.
Assurance grows where relationship deepens. Seven markers help discern authentic faith: abiding intimacy with Christ; encountering God in Scripture; ongoing, real prayer; worship and praise as a lifestyle; joyful generosity; union with believers in meaningful community; and sharing the good news with others. These are not performance boxes to check; they are relational fruits that rise and fall with closeness to Christ. Drifting comes when worldly noise drowns out the Spirit—assurance withers when the heart chases substitutes. But when the Word fills the mind, prayer brings real power, worship keeps the heart tender, generosity loosens the grip of self, love for the church awakens, and witness becomes natural. The invitation is simple and urgent: if conviction is stirring, confess and repent, believe and commit; if fellowship has cooled, return. Assurance belongs to those Christ knows—and He keeps His own.
Now prayer brings God's power And I can tell you You never have more power Than when you're in prayer God's power Comes through And from Prayer And the more Real Real prayers Now I'm talking about Real prayers The more real God is And you experience Power Enough power That you know That you know That you know That you're a follower Of Christ That power Can convince you Of that [01:04:33] (32 seconds) #PowerInPrayer
I remember my grandpa Before he got saved And he was 39 When he got saved He said I don't want to be around Those bunch of hypocrites Those people are crazy What they believe But then when he got saved He said I wanted to be with those people I love those people And I wanted to be with them A lot Do you have a desire To be with others? To work with others? To learn from others? And to help others? The love If you have a love for others It's a real good indicator That you're probably A follower of Christ If you don't have that desire You may not be [01:12:02] (37 seconds) #LoveRevealsFaith
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