Carpe Annum
Hey Chapel family. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas celebration. Even if everything didn’t go perfectly; even if someone got sick, or dinner got burned, or you don’t like any of your gifts…I hope you were able to see beyond all that, and just marvel at the wonder of God taking on human flesh.
So…Here we are, just three days before the start of a brand new year. So today I want to talk to you about New Year’s resolutions. I know what you’re thinking: “Oh no—I can’t stand New Year’s resolutions.” Right? If that’s what you were thinking, raise your hand. I can’t even see you, but I know there are hands up all over North Jersey.
Look: I get it. I’ve heard the statistics: “90% of New Year’s resolutions get broken by January 15th”. I know most people refuse to make resolutions. I get it!
But I’m going to give you a pastoral warning: don’t use your skepticism toward New Year’s Resolutions as an excuse for settling. Don’t use it as an excuse to just sort of copy and paste the same life that you had in 2024 into 2025. Because I promise you this: God wants you to move forward in 2025.
One of my favorite movie scenes of all times is from the movie Dead Poets Society. Robin Williams plays the role of an English teacher at an all-boys boarding school. And in one scene he’s standing in the hall with a group of boys, and the walls are lined with trophy cases and class pictures from the past. He points them to one class picture from about 70 years earlier, and he reminds them that the people in the picture were just like them, but now everyone in that picture is dead. And then, as all the boys are staring into the eyes of these young men in the old photos, the teacher asks a question, “Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see, gentleman, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But, if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go ahead, lean in. Listen....you hear it? Carpe…Carpe Diem. Seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary.”
I cannot watch that scene without getting chills. Because it’s true! Our lives are so fragile and so temporary. And it just makes sense to seize the day and live it well.
So today, as we stand on the threshold of new year, I’m calling all of us to seize the day. Carpe Diem. Better yet, seize the year—I think the Latin would be Carpe Annum. By God’s grace, let’s seize the year, and make 2025 extraordinary.
Not only for the reason given in that movie. See, in the movie, the teacher bases his appeal on the fact that they will be dead soon. Which is true—the Bible teaches we should make each day count, because we don’t know how much time we have till we die, or until Jesus returns. But as believers in Christ, we have an additional motivation—and it’s a stronger one. It’s the motivation that Paul talks about in the book of Philippians.
In Philippians 3:12, Paul is describing his approach to life—listen to this:
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Do you hear the passion in Paul’s voice? “Forgetting what is behind…straining toward what’s ahead, I press on…” He’s not coasting; he’s not kicking back and seeing what life brings; he’s intentionally moving forward. He’s seizing the day.
And the reason he’s doing that is specifically because of his relationship with God. Did you see it? He says, “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God called me heavenward…” Here’s how I would say it: Paul was being pulled forward by the call of God.
It’s kind of like this rubber band. If this hand represents my life, and this hand represents God’s purposes for my life, the rubber band is the call of God. And God’s call pulls me forward. If there’s no rubber band, that means I have no concept of God’s call, and my life has no direction. So I flounder. I go in circles. I spend hours scrolling social media videos. I don’t go anywhere. But when I’m aware of God’s call, I put down the phone…I get out of bed…I turn off the TV…because there’s purpose to my life. I’m being pulled forward by the call of God.
So here’s what I’m inviting you to do: As you enter 2025, Carpe Annum—seize the year—by letting the call of God pull you forward.
That’s going to mean something a little different for each one of us. But let me help you start thinking about this by using The Chapel’s mission statement. The mission of the Chapel is to build a family of Christ followers who do three things--say it with me: love God, love people, and serve the world. That is not only the mission of our church; it’s a really good grid for thinking through your life. So here’s my question: in 2025, how is God calling you—pulling you—to move forward in those three areas?
Let’s make this really practical. Take out your phone and open up the Notes app. I’m serious—I’ll wait. Or get out your iPad, or your ReMarkable, or whatever cool gadget you got for Christmas. Or just a notebook, if you’re old school. You got it? Okay, down the side of the page, write three things—you ready? Love God. Love People. Serve the World. Got that? Now, for the next few minutes, I’m going to suggest a few ways that God may be calling you to move forward in each of these areas. You ready? Here we go…
First, Love God. How can you make 2025 a year in which you grow stronger and deeper in your love for God? Two suggestions:
First, your devotional life. Is God calling you—pulling you—to read through the whole Bible this year? For a lot of people, that’s a very simple way to stay on track and stay in the Word. Personally, in my devotional life I like to take in smaller chunks—so I usually read about one chapter per day. Either way, decide that you will spend time in the Word and prayer every day.
As you do that, I highly recommend three things: do it in the morning. Do it before you open your emails. And use a journal—if you’ve been trained in the Big Idea Devotions method, use that; if not, just make some notes of what God is speaking to you through the Word. When you write it down, you’re much more likely to remember it. Do it in the morning. Do it before email. And use a journal. Make this the year that you start consistently meeting with God before you start your day.
Second suggestion: your generosity. Jesus said it’s impossible to serve both God and money. Because money is a powerful force, and it makes a powerful idol. And the best way to overcome that idol is through generosity.
Last year I told you about one of those God moments in my life: the lease on my car expired, so I went to the dealership and I was just about to start a new lease, but the price of cars had gone up so much since the pandemic, so I decided to wait a few days. During those days I prayed that if God brought me a used car that was really cheap but reliable, I would buy that and take the amount I would have paid on a monthly lease, and give it to God’s work every month. I prayed that prayer with very little expectation of it happening. You can imagine my surprise when two days later, my son brought home a 2000 Toyota Avalon with 124,000 miles on it—he was planning to flip it and make a little profit. It was so obvious what God was doing, so I bought it from him for $3000 dollars; that was 16 months ago, it’s running great and I’ve been able to give that lease payment away every month.
Maybe that story speaks to you, because God is pulling you to give up something that you want but you don’t really need, so you can be more generous.
If you’re not giving regularly to The Chapel, I encourage you to do that. For Norma Jean and me, that’s our first responsibility every month—to honor God with the first fruits of our wealth. We use automatic withdrawal so we don’t forget, and every year we pray and talk about how God wants to stretch us in our giving. We’re just about to have that conversation this week, because we don’t want to get stagnant in our generosity.
So…those are just two ways to love God, but they’re two really important ones. (Rubber band). How is God calling you to love him more in 2025 through your devotional life and your generosity? How is he pulling you forward? What would it mean for you to seize the year in the way you love God? Write that down next to “Loving God.”
Next, Love People. Did you know that the New Testament has over 50 “one-another” commands? Love one another; serve one another; encourage one another, etc. Guys, relationships are like oxygen, but it’s really easy to get absorbed by your phone or your sports or your workouts or whatever absorbs your attention, and neglect people.
So for this one, I’m just going to ask you to think about a series of questions, all about your relationships. Take a quick look back at 2024, and ask yourself,
“How often did I sit at the kitchen table and have significant conversations with the people in my family?”
If you’re married, ask, “How often did I intentionally plan dates with my spouse? How about overnights?” (When I slack off here, Norma Jean faithfully reminds me).
If your parents are living, ask yourself, “How often did I take my dad out to lunch, or stop by my mom’s for coffee?”
If you’re a parent, ask yourself, “How often did I put down my phone, and spend time listening to my son or daughter?”
This one is challenging in our frantically busy culture: “How often did I schedule time to just be with a friend?” Just hang out—over coffee or a hike or whatever. This is especially hard for guys.
If you live in a neighborhood, ask yourself, “Do I know the names of my neighbors. Do they know I care about them?”
Last question: “Am I part of a healthy small group?”
Did you know that when people are on their deathbeds, one of the most common regrets is that they didn’t spend more time with people, and they didn’t let the people around them know how much they loved them. Don’t make that mistake. You’ve got another year to do this well.
So as you think about those questions, what is God saying to you? (Rubber band…)How is he pulling you forward? What would it mean for you to seize the year in the way you love people? Write that down next to “Loving People.”
And then last, Serve the World. In the book of Acts, just before Jesus returns to the Father, he gathers his disciples together, and he gives them this assignment—this is Acts 1:8…And you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Did you hear the three geographical zones? Jerusalem was where they were standing. Judea and Samaria were the larger regions around them. And the ends of the earth is really far away.
So think about your life. If you are a follower of that same Jesus, what does this assignment mean for you? Let’s think in those three geographic levels.
Your “Jerusalem” means the place you are right now. Where is God calling you to serve close to home? Can I strongly recommend something? Serve in your church. The Chapel has amazing opportunities for you to use your gifts and make a significant impact in people’s lives. And if I can make a strong suggestion: consider serving in Chapel Kids. Because the children of the Chapel, from birth through 5th grade, are the most precious resource the church has. And serving on Sunday mornings in Chapel Kids take commitment, it takes sacrifice, it takes flexibility, and it’s one of the most rewarding things you could possibly do.
Where is God calling you to serve right here in Jerusalem?
Your “Judea and Samaria” is one step further out. Like, approximately 12 miles out. Some of you have heard the stories of what’s happening through 12-Mile Bridge; you’ve seen the pictures; maybe you even came out during our WeServe event. And in 2025, God is pulling you to take the next step. To mentor kids through New City Kids. To serve the homeless through City Impact. To teach trade skills through Servant’s Heart. If you’re feeling that tug, write it down so you won’t forget it.
And then finally, “the end of the earth.” Could God really be calling you to serve someplace far away? This coming year you’re going to hear a lot more about mission trips. Early in the year, we’re sending a team to do hurricane relief in North Carolina. We’re sending two teams to help evangelize and plant churches in Colombia—one in June and the other in October. And we’re sending a team to do medical missions in Kenya. How does that sound to you? Crazy? Keep your heart open. If you talk to anyone who’s been on a trip like that, they’ll tell you it changed their life. Maybe it’s your turn.
Wherever you’re feeling that tug in your heart, write that down next to “Serve the World”
Look, I’m just scratching the surface of ways that God might be leading you. What is he whispering in your heart? (Rubber band…)How is he pulling you forward in the ways you love God and love people and serve the World? Are you listening?