This is My Year

✝️ Unpacking Truths: Episode 106: This is My Year

In this episode, explore the transformative power of scripture in making 'New Year, New Me' more than just a social media mantra. Delve into the profound impact of staying in communion with God, seeking divine guidance, and discovering God's desires for our true selves. Uncover the abundance and Holy Spirit's influence, as we walk alongside God in setting goals for personal growth and taking crucial steps towards positive change. Make this year uniquely yours as you draw closer to the divine journey ahead.

#UnpackingTruths #ThisIsMyYear #DivineJourney #TransformativeScripture #CommunionWithGod #GoalSettingWithPurpose #PositiveChange #AbundanceInChrist #HolySpiritInfluence #NewYearNewMe #SpiritualGrowth #DiscoveringGodsDesires #AuthenticSelf #DivineGuidance #ScriptureInspiration

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Transcript

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today on Unpacking Truths we are going to be talking about New Year new me and all those changes you need to make right Pastor Kendall what oh I mean all of us need to make and seeking God's guidance in that hi I'm Pastor Kendall and I'm Pastor Moe and we are unpacking truths where we unpack God's Word and God's truth for life today everyone is seeking and we are here to help you find hope and power in God's work alright so here we are today we're in the beginning of the year few months in and what is it it's time to think about all the things we wanna change in our lives I love on social media the big push New Year new me have you seen it uh I have I've I've seen some really funny things on um TikTok where this guy rolls up and he's in his car and he's like starting a New Year off and as he's pulling up you see the LA Fitness but then he rolls it by it and right up to the McDonald's drive thru perfect so yes although I do have no that's the second week of January the second week yeah bombing I think I made it to February okay so as we begin our year right we're a few months in we're thinking about all the things we wanna change and what we want to be differently what we want to go differently in our lives um what do you think about mantras that are really embedded in our culture like you can do anything you put your mind to yeah I mean I mean that's a classic one that it's sort of like in and I think in in our American context we are always about what's the new thing and in in improving ourselves and I think that's great I think there is so much growth that's possible but as we're gonna try and unpack today it isn't always as easy as it seems and it isn't as simple as it seem and and it really needs to you have to have some components apart some spiritual components apart or it's so easy to get off track so um so what I mean when you start into this when you start thinking about this what comes to your mind um what comes to my mind is beginning things off with a really great start I got a plan in life and then it just falls to the wayside by like March right because I think that there's this idea that we can um have which make big changes in our life that are sustainable good for us change of habits even without something bigger than ourselves without the presence of god without divine guidance um and I've if there's one thing I've Learned it's that the divine guidance the presence of God in our lives helping us make decisions is essential and you know as I look back in some scripture I see you know I think about Paul right in Roman 7 where he goes on to say why do I do the things I hate and I don't do the things I want to do and I find myself saying that all the time I'm like here I go again yep doing it again yep you know well and and it's both that we you know there's really two points about what you said even right before that about we need divine guidance we need divine help because we need god to do this cause sometimes the changes that I'm after may not be the changes the gods thinking are most important for me first of all which direction am I going but then also the power to do it right you know and I just think of all my friends who are in a recovery journey and part of what they start with is admitting that I can't change that I need something greater than me and I think that's part of what you're getting at is that we need need to start with a God how do you want to help grow and change me and secondly God I'm gonna need you for that to happen cause I can't just do it in my own willpower as Paul said he couldn't I mean Paul can't if you were in trouble whoa whoa oh sorry I'm in trouble you're probably fine but well

and I love Proverbs 19: 3:51

21 that says many are the plans in the mind of a person but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand and so we can have these ideas we can have these thoughts we can have you know um training in certain things or invest our money into certain things but if we do not have God's God in it right guiding us and standing behind it and really we've been created to do specific things in the world and so really um I think going to our creator to ask what that means and what it is we're supposed to be doing I think is essential yeah it'll be interesting we want to hear from some of you about what are things that have you've sensed god leading you to and then that he gave you the power to do so put it in the comments if you've sensed God's leading in your life in a certain direction so we want and we'll be reading those so so where do you think as we as people discern what how they should make some of these changes where do you think that they should start you know more that's often it I always struggle with that question yeah because part of me goes well read the whole Bible why don't you ask time to you know we can't in one fell swooped I mean that takes a while and it really is I think immersing ourselves in scripture so I think part of it is we do need to just spend some time in God's Word and you know whether that starting in you want to pause letters Philippians is great place to start the gospel of John marks gospel we just spend some time with Jesus and in or in the sermon on the mount I think is another powerful place Matthew 5 through 7 where you just hear some of Jesus deep you know mean worthy teachings I mean that that uh that can just really challenge us and get us thinking because I think if you started maybe in Matthew 5 to 7 you're not gonna probably even get half halfway through one of those chapters and something is gonna striking your soul of going like oh wow here's maybe somewhere that God wants to work on me here's something that God wants to change in me um so I I think starting and listening for where does God want to take me so that I'm not just running off on my path for change and God said Kendall I want you over here and you're running down the wrong road right so um you know where Paul says uh and I don't have the verse right at the tip of my tongue but health is something but godliness is even greater and and so are where are we putting where are we putting our energies and then how do we get the energy to pursue that path yeah I don't know if those who are listening are like me but I didn't know what I was supposed to do or often when I thought of plans for myself um they definitely weren't in alignment with I think what God had created me for right um or my natural talents or skill set and so starting you know in scripture like you said and starting with really just I think even asking god you know what what have you created me to like what did you create me for I think a Jeremiah 1 5 where were told that before I formed you in the womb I knew you before you were born I consecrated you I appointed you a prophet to the nations and so that we too in our mother's womb have been created for a purpose anointed set apart to do something specific and that is so powerful to me and so going to the one who created us for for a specific purpose to be born here and now during this time I think is has become so essential for my journey um were you one of those that like knew what you wanted to do as when you were young no no no I envisioned you like 6 like setting up puppets like in people like and preaching to them I thought no I did not do that I did do in 6th grade Mo um we uh I went to Lutheran grade school and we had to give a devotion and I did a devotion and it was like the longest devotion of any of the sixth graders so it it I think it was okay but yeah so maybe I was but no I I didn't know from a little kid necessarily I was gonna be a pastor no the um you know I also think of that passage has always been so powerful for me from Romans 12 do not be conformed to this world but be transformed through the renewing of your mind there's so much in the world that wants to conform us to say here's how you need to make your life better here's what you need to pursue and what what God's Word reminds us of is that if we're just pursuing and need god strength for what we're wanting to do we may be missing where he wants us and so how do we let our minds be transformed and it is I think it's spending time in scripture I think it's time in worship listening to worship music it can be all of the in quietness and solitude of sitting and saying god where are you wanting to take me um and again in reading scripture allowing it to be not just what do I want to hear yeah but reading it and going like oh that one grabbed yeah you know that one hooked me oh what what was that hook about oh I especially the ones that make me a little uncomfortable yeah those are the ones that I think are like oh okay this is the Holy Spirit speaking pay attention Kendall so have there is is that kind of has that lived itself out in your life that you can think of in a way where you felt like oh wow and then you just found yourself changing the course that you were on um you know I think one maybe more recently I suddenly realized there was this tape that was playing in my head yeah that um wasn't words I was saying out loud but it was words I was saying to myself yeah that it was just an unhealthy tape it was just a tape that was sending my thoughts spinning in a bad way yeah and I just it was sort of like it just had this flash one like oh shoot yeah and it was just this moment where the Holy Spirit says Kendall you gotta get that tape out of there and and so I just had that moment of revelation but then it's been working at it and then recognizing it I mean just a few days ago I was in this place where I was getting frustrated again and this tape started playing and I it was playing for a little while and then all of a sudden like again that little Holy Spirit red flag went up no Kendall this isn't the tape you want and and it's like how do you how do you press the pause how do you well how do you yeah I'm the old guy so I'm Pickering a cassette tape throwing it out do you say like not today Satan and then you just I don't say that but I say God help me I said ah darn it yeah I mean I just um I visibly get frustrated yeah I just internally just go help me out stop it you know and sometimes God's name used I think in an appropriate way in that moment just sort of going like God help me out stop it because this I know it's not what he wants for me and I know it's taking me in an unhelpful place but those tapes that are in our that those lines that we keep repeating they they stay stuck yeah well and then we form these habits right like I love what Pizza 0 says he says Jesus may be in your heart but Grandpa's in your bones right like we have these modes of functioning that are unconscious that we live out of um for you know for me growing up mine was what you do equates your worth right and it's not just like what I do for myself it's what I do for you for other people that will make me worthy right okay and so we if we don't take that time to sit with God and to say like like King David it said search my heart know me reveal the things um so I know how to move forward in a way that gives me life and I can also live out of what you created me to do which brings us the greatest joy I just think these ideas of you know um these goals that we set for ourselves or priorities for the New Year you know new me New Year I often wonder why like why did we choose that thing or why you know the voices um is it voices we're hearing from the outside of what we think we need to be or should be doing or is it how we really feel in our heart like oh I wanna be more productive and I wanna do better at work and I wanna why like because that's what you really want because I know a lot of people that have thought that and then really sacrifice so much for that and at the end literally on their dying bed have said I wasted my time I wasted my I wasn't there for my kids the way I should have been that now they're not here with me right cause they're so busy living out and following the same thing he did right work work work you know busy busy and so it's just you know it's really surprising to me um how easily we just uh fall pray right like I hear what is it out of Peter first Peter where Satan is like a roaring lion waiting to devour and it's sometimes I think we make it too easy you know more I think one strategy here's a practical one yeah but a scary one I don't know that people would actually have the courage to try this yeah um but you know one of the things that developed I don't know 20 years ago in um in HR was sort of the 3 60 review yeah where it wasn't just your boss sort of giving you feedback but they talk to the people all around you okay so here would be a thing if you're starting a New Year and you're starting what do I need to grow in what if you talk to your spouse your kids your um your friends if you're in a small group and you said okay you know guy and let's say I'm in a men's small group and I go guys what do you see in the ways that I've been functioning here that you maybe think god wants me to grow in that is a scary thing to do to actually open it up for that feedback from others because we I mean cause that again is some of the the danger is when I'm just pursuing it as you said I can be go barking up the wrong path if I actually ask the people around me saying I'm trying to discern what God wants to do new in my life in this next year I'm trying to listen to him but I also wanna listen to God speaking through the people he puts around me if we ask those questions how powerful that could be yeah I think that could be although I think our spouses and um children would have no problem making that oh oh I know they would that's what I'm saying you would get plenty of feedback but the question is are we open to that yeah because that is a humbling question right to actually say I may not know what is best for my life that maybe the people around me see me better than I see myself yeah I think that would take a lot of strength and um confident security in who you are in Christ right to be able to even open that door up to say hey let me know some areas I need to change in and being able to really sit with that when you hear it right um and or you might hear some talents and some things that you didn't realize you had or some areas that you should be you know progressing in or pursuing one thing I love author Frederick Bachner he wrote um a great way to discern he said is to ask ourselves two questions the first is what do you most need to do like what is that thing in your heart that like you just naturally find yourself doing it all the time and does it meet a need in the world and so when those two meet together when our gladness and the things that we naturally live out of and our joy meet with the world's need that is most likely exactly where god wants us to be and but that's when I think we feel the joy in it yeah in doing it I will um more I think being uh having had my two years of high school German I think it's Frederick Beakner big oh yeah it is Beakner yeah you're right I didn't say I took Spanish oh yeah los and much more a much more practical language than what I do here's a German but you know I I I'm always drawn to the the verse from 1st John one uh where John writes if we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us but if we confess our sin God who is faithful in just can forgive our sins and can cleanse us from all unrighteousness and I'm just thinking about that cleansing that that's part of what new me New Year new me what it's both what are the new things I want to take on but what are the things that need to be cleansed you know what are the things what are the new ways of thinking and what are the undo things that need to be happened what are the do and what are the undue um because that only it's just one or the other and maybe um but again I'm not wanting us to beat ourselves up in this but to humble ourselves to go what really would be helpful yeah um one of the things um uh Craig Geschel uh uh Pastor Life Church TV has been uh just wrote I think just wrote a book on habits and just the power of developing small habits that changes over time and I think sometimes the the thing for us is we see where we're at and we're going like and I wanna be there I wanna be like that person and my daughter uh worked at a place where they talked about saying the too often were like how do I get 30% better at that and it's more like how do I get 2% better at that how do we do the little things that are manageable because sometimes I mean I think that's why so much of you know New Year new me stuff just breaks down immediately cause we're trying to bite off to and I think we don't know our bigger why right like we're heart motivated people and so love will make you do crazy things like we look at we follow Christ who gave his life because of his love for all of us for the world and you know we may say you know I may say oh I wanna get really healthy and in shape yeah but why and well and I start to think about that well because I you know like the way I feel yeah but is that is that really just it well actually no I don't want to end up um being a burden on my kids right or or my health being something where even at a younger age then they should be caring for me because I kind of saw you know my mom's health decline right because of some bad you know health choices she made in life and so there's a deeper y right so as we continue to dig finding that deep y helps me make better choices because it's like it's not just about me it's about I wanna be around for my grandkids one day and I wanna be able to run around with them and play with them and have the energy I need and so when we get a um a deeper why behind some of the changes we want and understand that better I think for for me anyway that's become a really great motivator um in order for me to stick with something what what happens Mo though if you start asking that why question and it ends up turning out that you're why it's kind of a shallow why you know like I want to work out just because I want people to look at me as being in shape you know then I mean that people to envy this goddess body yeah there you go so but but I mean I think if we're honest with ourselves yeah if we do I I think that why work is great because it can either reveal show how shallow we are either show well Indigo like then maybe this is the reason I don't make that much progress right is because the y isn't deep enough or that if the y is deeper as you said that can reveal like yeah this isn't just for this reason it's for this deep reason that I need to make these changes um so right and I guess that comes you know that's why I think it's so important in scripture all over right Proverbs 21 two people may think they're right in their own eyes but the Lord examines our heart um you know King David said god examine me right

and Psalm 1: 20:11

39 as we ask ourselves the why we may be we may reveal some things like you said where we're like wow that's a pretty shallow reason um and that's actually a reason that is not in alignment with who God's character is right and who were called to look like so um maybe thinking like maybe that's why it's not working right because or why I'm sticking with it cause it's really kind of shallow and it even if I did get it it wouldn't be fulfilling yeah at the end of the day you know another thing that just strikes me when we're doing this and talking about this mode this year I turned 60 I still can't believe that number should be associated with my name but it is um the but I did come to terms with something I don't know 15 years ago or whatever because I was in a phase where I was like how do I keep growing myself to be like that person or like that pastor and and I came to terms with this fact that god may have given some of these people more gifts than he gave me and am I okay with it and I got to be a point like nobody has more gifts than you and that no that is absolutely not true no I came to terms with that and so for me and all of these it's not about how can I become like that person how can I become the verse best version of Kendall yeah and how can I become the version of Kendall most like what Jesus wants it to be right and that's that because I think the comparison trap is what so undermines us to and so it really I came to the sense of peace of going like okay I'm not going to grow a church to be like that or I'm not gonna do this but I I'm not gonna write 17 books maybe I got one book in me somewhere along the way you heard you heard from Kendall he's got a book and we'll see but just wait but I was I was like that's okay yeah that's not I I I'm not called to be that right and and that also is I think part of the New Year new me it's but it's still we're still working with Kendall I I mean we're working with with what we got and it's this lump of clay it's an amazing lump of clay because I believe God I am fearfully and wonderfully made as someone threw a hoodie and I get a hoodie that says Kendall is an amazing lump of clay yeah yeah yeah I'm sure if you would like one as well just go ahead and comment in the bottom and we'll make sure you too can have your Kendall is amazing lump of clay hoodie that's right so but but I do think for us to realize to get out of the New Year new me because I wanna be like that person how how do I be the best me that's that's all the gods calling me to be yeah and I think with planning you know making changes some and um looking into our future and thinking what should I be doing where should I be putting my time I think being realistic with our goals as well um it reminds me of Romans 12 3 uh do not think you are better than you really are how humbling thank you be honest in your evaluation of yourself okay people who you take all of these scriptures out of context to just be inspirational memes that's the one that I think don't think you are better than you really are Paul is really like yeah and I mean that makes sense like if I said to you oh I wanna you know dance in the Joffrey Ballet yeah like the reality is it's it's probably not gonna happen I'm not built like a ballerina I haven't taken any classes it's like it's just not going to happen and that's not realistic yeah and um sometimes I think people have especially the younger we are we have these really lofty ideas of like I'm good yeah like you said with Maddie instead of being like I'm gonna go from here to a thousand it's like no like just like a 2% change like little changes little habit changes and um make a huge difference right yeah you know my I remember playing basketball with my brother in the backyard and we had a hoop back there and my brother had this classic line Kurt always said well if I was 6 9 I'd be a starting guard in the Big Ten and he eventually went to champagne but not as a starting basketball guard but he got an engineering degree and a master's degree there because that No. 1 Eagle Scout no he wasn't but he was but he's been a great engineer and you know it was just coming to I'm not gonna be 6 9 he's 5 10 probably so 6 9 was not in the cards given our gene pool and that was okay but you know what but I think that is where sometimes when we look at others and why am I not like that to just go look at what God has made with me look what God has given to me and how do I develop that right no absolutely um something else that I have found that has been really incredibly helpful not only in my life but in the life of some friends I know that have really gotten far in life is to seek counsel um and I mean it's all over scripture

Proverbs 15: 25:07

22 without council are plans fail but with many advisers they succeed

Proverbs 11: 25:14

14 where there is no guidance of people fall but in an abundance of counselors there is safety and so where are some areas in your own life that you have sought counsel and it's really moved you forward you know I have been blessed to have had some great mentors along the way the first I mean first being probably my dad just was a great leader and so he did some great mentoring in my life I saw it in the first pastor that I served with then Forbitner senior pastor when he was out at Zion in Rockford I Learned so much from him and I just I quoted him yesterday in talking with a friend um what were the changes you wanted to make and how did like why did you choose that person and how did they get you there you know what I didn't choose any of them oh God brought them into my life right and you know I think God knew I wasn't um driven enough to seek them out so God just flop them in my life um but no I mean I though it was an amazing gift the first again Denver I was I was literally in Harare Zimbabwe and I was supposed to do an internship as I was seminary and studying at the university of Zimbabwe was half a world away and my internship fell through yeah and I'm like oh no what am I gonna do I'm I don't have anything to come back to and the I remember getting a letter from the pastor I was supposed to be with and I just crumbled it up and kicked it across the floor cause I'm going like I've got nothing to go back to and then the seminary reached out and they said well hey there's this one church that put in uh they needed an intern and they were they missed the deadline they put it in late and maybe this would be a fit for you and so they sent me the paperwork it flew over the ocean by ship however it eventually got there and and I looked you and I go this is an amazing church yeah wow if I could learn from this place this would be great well I ended up talking to the pastor and Denver and he ended up becoming a huge mentor in my life I ended up going to Zion and not only for an internship but they called me back as an associate pastor but it literally came as in nothing it wasn't like I sought out 17 people and I found the right one god put it in my lap so I think some of it is are we open to the the wisdom that god brings to us I mean let's seek it out but are we also open to and I'm been blessed god has brought me some great right well and and I mean I think it's also noticing the people in your life right and asking them I'm sure for you know asking them lots of questions seeking counsel um just because they're in front of our face doesn't mean we're wise enough to actually say like hey here's where I'm failing or I'm not or I wanna get better right so being able to do that I know before um I was ordained I uh had to speak with Nadia Boultz Webber who's um a Lutheran pastor and I I I didn't even know who she was until uh I had actually talked to her an interviewer um about what it means to be a pastor that kind of walks that line right on like breaking rules versus yeah so um but I but I Learned a lot right like I Learned what lines I probably shouldn't cross um so thank you Nadia Bolt Webber because I still have a job because of you um yeah so I think as we begin our New Year's uh as we begin our year and wanna make some great changes I think um I think this is good stuff that that we've been talking about but um you've lifted up so many great scriptures Moe to point us back to because God's Word does have the wisdom that we need and can give us the strength to answer every question yep yep next time

an unpacking trudes Luke 14: 29:00

28 don't begin until you count the cost for who would begin construction of building without first calculating the cost to see if there's enough money to finish it and the third is learn how to say no well Moses was saying yes and he was seeing all the people and judging them right and Jethro had to come and say no give what you can to the other people and only take what what you need to take on the church wants me to pack up food I should say yes I should say yes to this and this and this and I will if I do not have a solid understanding of what I'm called to do thanks for tuning in if anything we said brought up any questions or ideas let's keep the conversation going in the comments below or email us at unpacking truths at Loc church help and don't forget to like share and subscribe so we can continue helping people unpack God's truth for their lives