A New Year is also exciting because the past year brought many difficult times into people’s lives. It was a year when:
• Some suffered a divorce
• Some suffered a financial setback
• Some suffered some serious health problems
So a New Year is a time when people can put all these bad things behind them and pray that the New Year will bring happiness into their lives.
But as we enter this New Year, there are some things that we are going to need.
I mentioned this morning that if this is going to be a great year for us, WE ARE GOING TO NEED CONTENTMENT!
There are PEOPLE and THINGS in our life that can bring a lot of misery into our life.
• The devil will do everything he can do to get us to believe that HAPPINESS and PEACE within come from wanting everything that everyone else has.
• He will try to cause us to believe that if we can acquire these things for ourselves we will find the SATISFACTION that we all desire to have.
But not so! There is ample proof that people are like Solomon in many ways. That is, Solomon had everything a man can imagine having. On top of that he was the smartest man on earth.
Illus: Did you hear the modern day version of “the wisdom of Solomon?”
Two women came before wise King Solomon, dragging a young lawyer in a three-piece suit between them.
• The first woman said: "This young lawyer agreed to marry my daughter."
• The second woman said: "No! He agreed to marry MY daughter."
Finally Solomon said, "Bring me my biggest sword, and I shall hew the young attorney in half. Each of you shall receive a half."
• The first woman said, "Sounds good to me."
• The second woman said, "Oh Sire, do not spill innocent blood. Let the other woman's daughter marry him."
The wise king did not hesitate a moment. "The attorney must marry the first lady's daughter!"
Someone said, “King Solomon, she was willing to hew him in two!"
"Indeed," said wise King Solomon. "That shows she is the TRUE mother-in-law."
Solomon was a man that had everything, yet with it all he was miserable.
Look at what he says in Ecclesiastes 1:14 “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit.”
The Word of God teaches us that to find SATISFACTION we must learn that contentment DOES NOT COME FROM WITHOUT, but WITHIN!
In the coming year, WE ARE GOING TO NEED CONTENTMENT.
But also:
II. WE ARE GOING TO NEED COMPANIONSHIP
Have you noticed that HUMAN COMPANIONSHIP is not enough?
That is, in this life-
(1) WE FIND COMPANIONSHIP IN A FRIEND
We all have friends, but we all have fewer than we think. We all have a lot of acquaintances, but we have few friends.
Illus: One man said, “Most of us can count all of our friends on one hand and most likely have a few fingers left over.”
Illus: True friends are like Diamonds... they are real and rare. False friends are like leaves... they are scattered everywhere.
One of the joys of life is to know that we have some FRIENDS in this life that truly love and care for us. While it is great to have good friends in this life, it takes more than this to have TRUE CONTENTMENT.
(2) WE FIND COMPANIONSHIP IN CHURCH FAMILY
Some attend a wonderful Bible-believing, Bible-preaching, soul winning church but they are miserable!
Illus: Did you hear about the two church members who were going soul winning? They knocked on the door of a woman who clearly was not happy to see them. She told them in no uncertain terms she did not want to hear their message and then slammed the door in their faces.
• To her surprise, the door did not close. In fact, it bounced back open.
• She tried again, really put her back into the job, and slammed the door again. But again, the door bounced back like it was made of Silly Putty.
• Convinced one of these rude church members was sticking a foot in the door, she reared back to give the door a slam that would teach them a lesson.
Just then, one of the church members said, "Ma'am, before you do that again, you might want to move your cat."
Did you know you could find the best Bible-believing, Bible-preaching, soul winning church in town and still not find TRUE CONTENTMENT?
(3) WE FIND COMPANIONSHIP IN A MATE
Some believe to be truly happy and have TRUE CONTENTMENT in life they must find the PERFECT MATE.
Illus: At a local coffee shop, a young woman was expounding on her idea of the perfect mate to some of her friends.
"The man I marry must be a shining light. He must be musical. Tell jokes. Sing. And stay home at night!"
An old granny overheard and spoke up, "Honey, if that's all you want, get a TV!"
Some have the very best mate that a man or woman can have on this earth and still they are not content.
We have all these companions in life:
• Wonderful friends
• Wonderful church family
• Wonderful mate
BUT YET SOMETHING IS STILL MISSING!
WHAT IS MISSING? The Lord Jesus is missing!
When the Lord Jesus does not have that very special place in their life, they know something is MISSING!
Illus: Think about this: when God created us, don’t you think He was smart enough to create us in such a way that we would never find true satisfaction until we allow Him to reign supreme in our lives?
His companionship offers us something that no other companionship can offer us.
Look at Hebrews 13:5, God has said, “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
Listen, His friendship is like no other friendship on this earth.
• We can have the best of friends today, and those same so called friends may be our worst enemies tomorrow.
• We can be married to the best mate on this earth, but that same mate may betray our love tomorrow.
But the Lord is not like this. He said, in Matthew 28:20, “…and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.."
His friendship is not only enduring, it is astounding!
Look at John 15:13, we read, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
Illus: The songwriter said it this way years ago; “What a friend we have in Jesus!”
Illus: What are friends?
Friends are people with whom you dare to be yourself. They ask you to put on nothing, only to be what you are. When you are with them, you feel as a prisoner feels who has been declared innocent.
You do not have to be on your guard. You can say what you think, as long as it is genuinely you.
Friends understand those contradictions in your nature that lead others to misjudge you. With them you breathe freely. They understand. You do not have to be careful.
You can abuse them, neglect them, and tolerate them. They understand.
You can weep with them, sing with them, laugh with them, and pray with them.
Through it all - and underneath it all - they see, know, and love you.
We do not know what this year holds for us, but we are going to need CONTENTMENT, and COMPANIONSHIP. Also-
III. WE ARE GOING TO NEED COURAGE
It takes a lot of courage to serve in the Lord’s army.
Illus: Army, Air Force, and Marine Generals were standing in front of a hundred foot tower with a Navy Admiral.
• The Air Force General says to the others, "My men are the most courageous of the Armed Forces."
• "Ha!" said the Army General, "My men are the most courageous and I'll prove it."
• The Army General calls a Private over from the tower. He tells the Private, "I want you to jump off that tower - no rope, no parachute."
• "Yes, sir," the Private yells, and proceeds to climb the tower. The Private walks to the edge, yells "Hoo-ahh!" and jumps off the tower. He is killed instantly upon impact.
• "That's nothing," the Air Force General said. He calls a Senior Airman over. "Son, I want you to jump off that tower - no rope, no parachute and I want you to do it with style."
• "Yes, sir!!!" the Senior Airman yells. He climbs to the top of the tower, walks to the edge and jumps. He executes a swan dive that would make Greg Louganis proud, hits the ground and dies on impact.
• The marine commander said, "Ya'll obviously forgot the Marine Corps were here,"
• He calls a Lance Corporal over. "Marine, I want you to jump off that tower and make the Corps proud!"
• The Corporal yells, "Ooh-rah," by way of response and runs to the tower. He grabs an M-60 and an ammunition belt on the way and wraps the belt around himself in the Pancho Villa style. He climbs the tower and walks to the edge. Upon reaching the edge, he throws two grenades into the air, yells "Semper Fi Do or Die!" and jumps off. He starts shooting the M-60 in mid-air, clipping treetops and yelling the entire way down. The two exploding grenades obscure his impact. When the smoke clears, only little pieces of the Marine are left.
• The others are impressed and nod their heads in admiration.
• Then the Admiral says, "That's nothing." The others turn to face the Admiral, their faces in disbelief. The Admiral calls a Seaman over who was cleaning latrines. "Son, I want you to jump off that tower- no rope, no parachute."
• The Seaman looks the Admiral in the face and says, "Have you lost your mind, that is the craziest thing I have every heard in my life!” And walks off.
• The Admiral turned to the others and said, "Now THAT'S courage!"
Hebrews 13:6, "So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."
WHAT IS COURAGE?
Courage is doing what you’re afraid to do.
Some folks will go their entire life, year after year wanting to do something, but every year FEAR drives them back into a corner.
Illus: A condemned prisoner awaiting execution was granted the usual privilege of choosing the dishes he wanted to eat for his last meal. He ordered a large plate full of mushrooms.
"Why all the mushrooms and nothing else?" inquired the guard. "Well," replied the prisoner, "I always wanted to try them, but was afraid to eat them before!"
Interestingly, there would be no need for courage if there were not something to FEAR.
But many times people draw back into fear when there is nothing to fear.
Illus: A freshman at Eagle Rock Junior High won first prize at the greater Idaho Falls Science Fair, April 26, 1997.
He was attempting to show how conditioned we have become to alarmists practicing junk science and spreading fear about everything in our environment.
In his project he urged people to sign a petition demanding strict control or total elimination of the chemical "dihydrogen monoxide."
And for plenty of good reasons, since:
• It can cause excessive sweating and vomiting
• It is a major component in acid rain
• It can cause severe burns in its gaseous state
• Accidental inhalation can kill you
• It decreases effectiveness of automobile brakes
• It has been found in tumors of terminal cancer patients
He asked 50 people if they supported a ban of the chemical.
• 43 of the 50 said yes
• 6 were undecided.
• And only one knew that "dihydrogen monoxide” is the chemical name for H20 (water).
Some fears are irrational. They occur because of ignorance.
But some fears are very real.
Illus: Researchers at Johns Hopkins University reported that 30 years ago, the greatest fears of grade school children were:
1. Animals
2. Being in a dark room
3. High places
4. Strangers
5. Loud noises.
Today, kids are afraid of the following:
1. Divorce
2. Nuclear war
3. Cancer
4. Pollution
5. Being mugged
There are real fears out there in the world.
But we do not have to be afraid for our God is with us….
Hebrews 13:6 "So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."
Conclusion:
As we face a New Year, we see that –
Part 1
I. WE ARE GOING TO NEED CONTENTMENT
Part 2
II. WE ARE GOING TO NEED COMPANIONSHIP
III. WE ARE GOING TO NEED COURAGE
