DEVOTIONAL
Happy new year! I am so excited for 2023. So much is going to happen in the next year!
And so much could happen!
A new year is so full of possibilities and opportunities. Unless of course we waste it.
So many of us waste our lives. We wake up every day with no passion or goals for our lives and because of it we end up in places we didn’t want to be with no motivation to change it. Think about how fast 2022 went by? 2023 is going to do the exact same thing. Do you want to look back at 2023 knowing you set goals and made progress or that you wasted time and did nothing to benefit yourself or anyone else? I don’t know about you but I want this year to be different.
How many of you remember the phrase from this weekend
“When you fail to plan you plan to fail.”
When we go into a new year with no goals or plans, we set ourselves up for failure. We set ourselves to do nothing productive this year and let our days waste away. But when we make plans we actually have something to strive towards and work on, who knows what we can accomplish.
Here’s why this matters. You exist for a reason. God created you with a purpose in mind. He can use you to accomplish His will and make really big impacts in the world. Ephesians 2:10 says,
"For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
God created us to use us to do good works. To make this world better, to help people, to make Christ known. But too many of us are too apathetic and passive to get anything done.
That’s why we have spent so much time the past month setting goals for this year. We want 2023 to be a year of life change at Remix. A year where we pray and seek God and take action as we follow Him. We are going to discuss with our small groups the goals we have set for this year in just a moment but first we have to remember how to set a good goal.
A good goal is a SMART goal
Specific - Your goal can’t be too broad.Measurable - Can you actually measure to see if you accomplished your goal? Achievable - Set a goal that is realistic to your life and abilities.Relevant - Does it relate to your life? Does the goal you are setting matter? Timed - What is the timeline for you to accomplish this goal?
BREAK THE ICE
If you could become fluent in any language in the next year what would it be?
SMALL GROUP QUESTIONS
Group Leader Note: Take some time at the start of the group to talk about the past year. Share any wins you saw in the group and then ask your group if they have any goals they accomplished last year that they would like to share.
1. Let’s read Ephesians 2:10. What does this say about the way God views us?
Ephesians 2:10
2. If God created you for a purpose, what ideas do you have on what that purpose could be? *answers could be more broad like “To know Christ and to make Christ known” or more specific like some talents and dreams the students have for their lives.
3. Let’s set some goals for 2023. How many of you set a goal this weekend at Remix?
MOVING FORWARD
We have been focusing on setting a goal of something to stop and start this year. Go around the group and have everyone share their goals. Then test the goals against the smart acronym> Help the students in your group set goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, timed and most importantly encourage goals that will lead them closer to Christ.
Once you have all set some goals, write them down somewhere where you can check in on them throughout the year. Pray over the goals and ask God to help your group grow deeper in their love for Christ and each other this year.
©2026 Sagebrush Church
