Make a Fresh Start Series
365 Days of Possibilities
Tonight we continue with our Fresh Start Series by talking about 365 Days of Possibilities. Every day we have is a blessing from God. In fact the Bible says we have no assurance of tomorrow, so this is all we have – this moment, this time, so we ought to make the most of every day, every possibility.
Some of you may be going through the motions of living your life. Do you remember the old Dunkin Donut commercial – “It’s 4 am, time to make the donuts.” Maybe that’s how some of you feel when you get out of bed in the morning. Some mornings I feel like that.
You get up every day and you just muddle through doing the same old thing, day after day, day in, day out. Over and over again until you just become numb from the routine.
I’ve worked with people that I swear I felt like taking their pulse to see if they were alive.
I have an interesting text to kick off our discussion this evening.
Eccl. 9:4-10
4 Anyone who is among the living has hope —even a live dog is better off than a dead lion! 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten. 6 Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun. 7 Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do. 8 Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil. 9 Enjoy life with your wife, whom you love, all the days of this meaningless life that God has given you under the sun— all your meaningless days. For this is your lot in life and in your toilsome labor under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
If you have the ability to suck in air every day, then you have hope. Basically what Solomon is saying is that, if you are alive you’ve got a chance to do something special with your life. After you’re dead, your chances are over. If you are going to make a difference before they pat your face with a shovel, then you better make it happen while you can. I like what it says in verse 10, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.”
People who are alive have hope. We can dream, we can plan, we can have a fresh start. You might be thinking that life has passed you by, but if you’re still breathing, you’ve got a shot! You can make a fresh start today! Right now! God has given you that chance.
Some folks are always looking to the past. Some only look to the future. Too often we miss the moment that is now! We miss the possibilities in front of our face because we’re not looking at what’s right in front of us.
How do we make the most of those 365 days of possibilities? (My version of the “Be-attitudes”)
1. Be engaged – get off the bench and into the game. When I played football and baseball as a kid, I always wanted to be in the game. There wasn’t any fun in sitting on the bench. Quit watching life on the sidelines. Life isn’t a dress rehearsal – make it count for God.
Matthew 4:18-22 - As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." 20At once they left their nets and followed him.
21Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
I don’t know for sure how much time they had with Jesus before this incident, but what I see is the coach telling them to get into the game. They didn’t hesitate, they left immediately and followed Him.
If we are going to make the most of the possibilities, then we have to resolve that we aren’t going to sit on the sidelines and watch the parade go by. We’re going to get in the parade. Jesus has called us to “Go”. He didn’t restrict it by talent or age or gender or race or financial status. All of us have something we can contribute to the cause of Christ and the glory of God.
2. Be positive – The preacher said there was a time for every season. Bad things happen. Mourning and sadness must come, but we cannot stay in a constant state of sorrow. That is not God’s intention for us. When King David’s son by Bathsheba was dying, he sat in mourning, but when the child passed away, he got up, washed himself and changed the countenance of his face. For him it was time to turn the page and get on with life.
I believe that some people get in a perpetual state of whining and negativism. It becomes very difficult for them to think good things will happen. They don’t look at their day with great anticipation of what possibilities are at the threshold. Instead they see it as just another day closer to death. If you are feeling that way, let me share some encouragement with you; you can turn it around.
Phil. 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”
When you find yourself feeling negative, I want you to say that verse to yourself until you start feeling that something good is going to happen to you. Your self-talk has a great deal to do with how you perceive your possibilities. If you keep telling yourself things are going to go wrong, they will. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Thankfully, the opposite is true as well. If you just keep telling yourself things are going to work out for the best, your attitude will remain positive and things will get better.
Some of you might be facing some tough obstacles – job, marriage, money, kids, etc. Every day is an opportunity. An opportunity for God to do something special in your life. Why not look at each of those opportunities as a blessing from God. You can choose blessing or cursing. Why not choose blessing? What will you make of your day? God desires it to be a blessing. Will you take it?
We are lavishly loved by God. God sees us as His wonderful creation. The Bible says we were fearfully and wonderfully made. If the world has labeled you a loser – God says you’re a winner! If the world has labeled you addict, hypocrite, hopeless, God sees you as so much more in Christ. He sees in you the wonderful possibilities. When you trust Christ as Savior you become a new creation! You’re not what you used to be.
3. Be enthusiastic – demonstrate joy. Be enthusiastic about your day – others will get annoyed that you are so “bubbly”, some will think you’re some kind of weird freak, and still others will find it contagious and they too will become enthusiastic. Hang around those people.
Light yourself on fire and see who comes to watch.
Jesus said, (John 10:10) The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
John 16:24 “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete”
A smile doesn’t hurt your face. Enthusiasm never killed anyone. Be excited about the possibilities that are in front of you. Charge head on into your day without fear or apprehension. It’s like getting on a roller-coaster and shouting as you crest the first rise with your hands in the air – “HERE WE GO!” Start every day that way. Get out of bed, sit on the edge, raise your hands in the air and shout, “HERE WE GO!”
4. Be a servant – Nothing opens the door of possibilities wider than when you begin your day with a servants heart. When you are looking for ways to help others, God miraculously provides ample opportunity for you to do just that. Those possibilities are always there, we just aren’t looking for them.
Mt. 25:34"Then the King will say to those on his right, ’Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’… 40"The King will reply, ’I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’
Another related and favorite verse of mine is Hebrews 13:2:
“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.”
Let us continue to be servants, and God will make every day a possibility.
5. Be all you can be. That’s more than a military advertising campaign. We must give our best in everything we do. Let me share with you a few verses that I turn to all the time. These verses give me encouragement to try my very best in everything. First, listen to what it says in Ephesians 5:15 & 16:
15Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
Paul is sharing this with us so that we might make the most of every opportunity to live our lives for Christ and that He might shine through us and our testimony. Think about it. If others see you always complaining, depressed, lazy, moping and you say you’re a Christian – does that sound inviting to them?
Here are two verses in Colossians:
3:17 “And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
3:23 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men”
If we want to get the best from every possibility, then we must give our best effort. Have you ever heard the expression, “Faint heart, never won fair game?” Go at it with everything you got! Give your best, God gave His best.
6. Be a difference maker. Make a difference in someone’s life. Add value to their life. What do I mean by that? We must interact with people. Whether in church or at work or in social settings. If we are to make the most of the possibilities in our life, we must help others make the most of the possibilities in their life. When we do that, so much more good can happen. How do we add value to others? How do we make a difference in their life? It starts by seeing the possibilities in “them”. If you look at a person and you think they have nothing to contribute or that they will be dead weight, you’ve already shot down the success of your possibilities before you’ve even begun. On the other hand, if you see great potential in that person and you begin to encourage that potential and raise your level of expectation, you might be surprised at what that person is capable of. Let me give you an example:
The world looked at a rag tag group of men and they saw smelly fisherman, thieves, cheats, ignorant sinners. Jesus saw His disciples. By His teaching and encouragement, these men became more than even they thought possible.
What would happen if we looked at our children that way? What would happen if we looked at our co-workers that way?
When we begin to believe in others, when we speak the truth in love to them, when we help them stretch beyond what they thought was possible, when we have their best interest at heart instead of our own, then we add value to that person. We open the door of possibilities not just for ourselves but to them as well.
7. Be generous (with gifts, praise, time) – Some of the most successful people I know are also the most generous people I know. We need to be generous with our gifts, our praise and our time. Our Great Provider has given to us that we might be able to share with others and by doing so provide possibilities for them. Jesus said in the sermon on the mount; (Mt. 5:42) “Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.”
In Mt. 10:8b he said – “…freely you have received, freely give.”
Every good and perfect gift comes from God. What you have in your possession is only on loan to you. “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
Imagine the possibilities of your generosity.
8. Be thankful – It is God that makes all things possible. So for every possibility that God presents to us, let us be ever thankful for it. That spirit of thankfulness helps to keep us humble. It also gives honor where honor belongs – to God.
Col. 3:15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
If we are going to live for God, why not make it a 24/7, 365 thing? Why not give it our all? What could it hurt? Have you got something better to do?
Let me close with this. If you’ve seen the movie “Forrest Gump”, then you know Forrest had more than one challenge in his life. He was born with crippled legs. He was born with a marginal amount of intelligence. His mother was raising him as a single mom. Other kids made fun of him. He was shot in the “buttocks” while in Viet Nam. Yet with all of these hurdles and challenges, he always seemed to find wonderful possibilities and make the most of them. Every day was an opportunity, not a disaster.
As they say, “tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life.” What exciting possibilities are ahead of you? Why not make a fresh start, beginning tomorrow – embrace the possibilities that God puts on your path.
