On Course -Week 1

Devotional

Day 1: Spiritual growth needs intentional planning and action

Knowing the destination is not enough; you also need a path to get there. In the same way you wouldn’t start a trip without a route, don’t step into a new season without a plan for prayer, Scripture, and obedience. God models intentionality—He gives plans, details, and next steps—so it’s wise to seek Him for a clear approach to growth. Name where you believe God is leading you this year, and map practices that actually move you there. Small, specific, written steps beat vague wishes every time. Invite the Holy Spirit to guide the plan and empower the follow-through. [50:54]

Luke 14:28–30: Before you start a building, first sit down and calculate what it will take. Otherwise you might pour a foundation and run out of resources, and people will point to the unfinished project and say, “They couldn’t finish what they began.”

Reflection: If you named your desired spiritual destination for this year, what two or three practices form your first steps on the path, and when will you start them?

Day 2: Every believer is responsible to mature

God invites each person to grow beyond spiritual infancy into steady, practiced maturity. Helpful leaders and a loving church are gifts, but no one else can do your daily obedience, your Scripture intake, or your serving for you. Maturity looks like learning to “cut your own steak”—seeking the Lord, applying truth, and discerning right from wrong through practice. Rather than blaming circumstances, accept the joyful call to feed your soul and strengthen others. Begin with one consistent pattern that nourishes you and equips you to bless. [56:08]

Hebrews 5:12–14: By now you should be teaching others, yet you still need the basics repeated. You’re like infants who require milk, not ready for solid food. Solid food belongs to the mature—those who have trained themselves by steady practice to discern good from evil.

Reflection: Where have you expected others to “feed” you, and what is one concrete way you’ll “cut your own steak” this week (a study plan, a reading rhythm, a serving role)?

Day 3: Choose life: love, obey, and commit

Most people don’t fall suddenly; they drift. Choosing life is a daily act: loving the Lord, obeying His ways, and holding fast when distractions pull. These choices don’t earn God’s favor; they align your heart with His blessing and keep you on course. Decide in advance how you will love, obey, and commit today, and let those choices steer your calendar and conversations. As you set your direction, God meets you with grace and strength for the journey. [01:05:21]

Deuteronomy 30:15–20: Today I set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life—by loving the Lord your God, by obeying Him, and by clinging to Him—so that you and your children may live under His care in the place He is giving you.

Reflection: Which daily moment—morning routine, commute, or bedtime—could become your simple “I choose life” checkpoint to reaffirm love, obedience, and commitment?

Day 4: Be careful how you live: make the most

Wisdom doesn’t drift; it decides. Good intentions are not the same as intentional planning, so turn desire into a simple, written plan. Try a “turn the page” Scripture rhythm, a specific prayer window, and a modest fast that makes space for God’s voice. Write it down, share it with a trusted friend, and review it weekly. Thoughtful, Spirit-led structure positions you to recognize and do what the Lord wants. [01:10:43]

Ephesians 5:15–17: Pay close attention to how you live—not as the unwise but as the wise—using every opportunity well because the days are evil. Don’t act carelessly; learn what the Lord wants and walk it out.

Reflection: Write down your plan for the next 21 days—what will you read (even just “turn the page”), when will you pray, and what will you fast from to create space?

Day 5: Stay on course: small steps prevent drift

A blindfolded walker can start straight but slowly angle off; our souls can do the same without regular checks. Gentle, frequent corrections—Scripture, prayer, community, and serving—keep you from “pinballing” into avoidable obstacles. When you realize you’ve wandered, don’t shame yourself; lift your eyes and realign with Jesus. He is faithful to direct your steps as you yield both your desire and your effort to Him. Take one small, consistent step today that keeps you moving in the right direction. [01:09:41]

Philippians 2:12–13: Keep working out the implications of your salvation with reverent awe—not only when someone is watching, but even more on your own—because God Himself is at work in you, giving both the will and the power to do what pleases Him.

Reflection: What is one small, repeatable course-corrector you will practice this week (a daily check-in with a friend, a brief evening examen, or a verse you’ll rehearse) to prevent drift?

Sermon Summary

Kicking off a new year and a new series called “On Course,” the focus here is clear: spiritual growth does not happen by accident. Using warm humor and relatable travel stories, the call is to set direction, not just name a destination. God himself is a planner—Noah’s ark, the Exodus, the Tabernacle, Jericho, the feeding of the 5,000, and even Revelation display divine intentionality. In that same spirit, disciples are urged to “count the cost” before building (Luke 14), embrace a plan for growth, and then follow through.

The charge is deeply pastoral: many believers “grow by osmosis” through proximity to church life, but Scripture expects more. Hebrews 5 rebukes perpetual infancy and calls believers to mature, moving from milk to solid food through training and discernment. This maturity includes owning one’s discipleship rather than faulting others for a lack of “meat.” Sunday gatherings will keep the gospel central and equipping practical—because the healthiest pattern is believers leading friends to Jesus in daily life and then bringing them into the church for fellowship and formation.

The heart-level choice from Deuteronomy 30 anchors the application: choose life by loving the Lord, obeying him, and committing firmly to him. Most spiritual collapse isn’t sudden; it’s a drift. Without intentional direction, good intentions will not keep a life on course. Therefore, make a written plan. Practical helps include the “Turn the Page” daily Bible habit with a physical Bible (date, underline, jot notes), joining the streamlined Men and Women of Valor in HF Groups, and engaging in a 21-day fast to crucify the flesh and increase focus on Jesus. The church will provide tools and community, but each disciple must choose to grow.

Woven through the day is gratitude for generational faithfulness—baby dedications within the church’s twentieth year—and a fresh call to the table of the Lord, remembering the body and blood of Jesus as both the foundation and fuel for a life brought on course. The appeal is simple and urgent: seek God first, write the plan, walk it out, and expect God to direct every step.

Key Takeaways

1. Spiritual growth demands intentional planning. God models detailed planning throughout Scripture and calls his people to do likewise. Counting the cost is wisdom, not legalism; it guards against half-built foundations and half-formed disciples. Good intentions are not a strategy—plans with execution shape holy habits. [50:54]
2. Take responsibility for your maturity. Hebrews 5 challenges believers to move from milk to meat through practice and discernment. Blaming church content for a lack of growth misses the call to feed oneself and serve others. Sunday remains gospel-centered; weekday discipleship is where depth multiplies. [54:24]
3. Drift happens without direction. Most people don’t fall in a moment; they quietly veer off course. Without a clear path, life bumps into obstacles, and course confusion follows. Ephesians 5 urges thoughtful living that discerns the Lord’s will—direction cures drift. [67:49]
4. Build a simple, written plan. Adopt the “Turn the Page” habit: read daily from a physical Bible, date it, and note what stands out. Join groups, engage the Valor pathway, and choose a 21-day fast to dethrone the flesh and sharpen focus. Writing it down turns desire into discipleship. [78:14]
5. Love, obey, commit—key to life. Deuteronomy 30 frames discipleship as a real-time choice between life and death. Loving God, obeying him, and committing firmly reorders desires and resists the pull of lesser gods. It’s not about us; it’s about Jesus and his kingdom. [65:21]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[11:19] - Announcements: First Wednesday & Conferences
[12:21] - Baby Dedications and Prayer
[39:50] - New Series: On Course for 2026
[40:20] - Destination vs. Path: Travel Metaphor
[42:14] - Lost on the Road: Direction Lessons
[46:53] - Principle 1: Growth Requires Planning
[50:54] - Count the Cost (Luke 14)
[54:24] - Principle 3: Own Your Growth
[57:15] - Sunday Focus: Gospel and Mission
[67:49] - Drift Happens Without Direction
[71:31] - Valor Relaunch, Groups, Bible Reading
[76:55] - 21-Day Fast and Written Plan
[83:22] - Communion: Examine and Remember
[94:39] - Closing and First Wednesday Invite

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading

- Deuteronomy 30:15-20

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Observation questions

In Deuteronomy 30:15-20, what two paths are set in front of the people, and what outcomes are tied to each path?
In verse 20, what three actions are named as “the key to your life,” and in what order?
Name at least four biblical moments that show God’s intentional planning (examples were given from across the Bible). [49:55]
What concrete next steps were offered for setting direction this year (daily Bible habit, groups/Valor, fasting, a written plan)? [01:18:14]

Interpretation questions

How does choosing to love the Lord, obey him, and commit firmly to him (Deuteronomy 30:20) help guard a person against slow spiritual drift?
Why does “counting the cost before building” fit a conversation about spiritual habits and growth rhythms? What problems does it prevent? [50:54]
If “every believer is responsible for their own spiritual growth,” what does that responsibility look like beyond Sundays? [54:24]
If drift often happens quietly over time, what kinds of unexamined routines or assumptions might be nudging a believer off course? [01:07:49]

Application questions

Make it simple and written. What one daily rhythm and one weekly rhythm will you commit to for the next 30 days? When and where will you do them, and who will check in with you? Write it down before you leave. [01:18:14]
“Turn the Page” plan: What will you read tomorrow? Where will you keep your physical Bible? Will you date the page and jot one sentence of what stood out each day? Share your time and spot. [01:14:44]
Count the cost: Identify one spiritual “build” you’ve started but not finished (prayer rhythm, serving, reconciling a relationship, etc.). What will it cost in time, calendar, and focus to take the next step this month? [50:54]
Feed yourself: What two ways will you “cut up your own steak” this month—specific studies, a podcast/teaching series, or a service role that stretches you? Pick a start date. [57:15]
Drift audit: Where have you quietly drifted—Bible, prayer, generosity, purity, community? What “chairs or poles” have you bumped into that warn you you’re off course? Name one clear path/boundary you’ll set this week. [01:09:01]
21-day fast: What will you fast (food/media/other)? When will you start? What prayer/Scripture will you insert into that space each day? Who will fast with you for encouragement? [01:17:25]
Love. Obey. Commit. Name one act of love you’ll do (toward God or someone), one specific step of obedience, and one tangible commitment to hold firmly this week. Which feels hardest and why? [01:05:21]

Sermon Clips

We're praying every week that that you're gonna bring new converts into the room or that you're gonna even bring the lost into the room so that we can tell them about Jesus. The number one thing that everybody needs to know is that Jesus Christ loved them, that God loved them so much that even though they were born into a sinful state, he sent his son to pay the price for their sin. And come on. Yeah. We we'll never stop saying it. That's what we need to say. And then we need to equip. And as a pastor, I need to equip you and train you with the ability to go out and tell other people. You know what? God loved you so much that even though you were born into sin, he sent his son Jesus to pay the price for that sin. [00:57:51] (33 seconds) #ShareJesusLove

Discipleship requires a plan. Faith does not grow accidentally. And and here's the thing that gets most of us. Good intentions are not the same as intentional planning. Because I I promise you, if I went up to every one of you and said, hey, do you wanna go closer to god this year than you were last year? I'm gonna say high 90 percentile. People are gonna say, yes, I do. And they're gonna say it with the severity mark. They're gonna mean it with their heart. They do. All of us wanna go closer to god than we are right now. Amen? We have the best of intentions, but good intentions are not the same as intentional planning. If we don't have a plan, we won't get there. [01:10:17] (46 seconds) #IntentionalDiscipleship

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