What are your 2014 Kingdom opportunities?

January 1, 2014 was an unscheduled day for me to get a few things back on the tracks.  These include --

• another run at shedding the "middle-earth" pounds (i.e., around my mid-section) I've re-acquired in November and December
• a strong prompting from the Spirit to get on my knees every day for many minutes a day, including praying for and writing to our missionaries around the world
• a personal promise to blog and tweet more frequently
• a few great starts on good reading, with the lead off read being John Stott's great commentary on ROMANS: God's Good News for the World

Popping in on the email list was a great note from a family in our church which is making friends with a family from India who are Hindu.  The wife/mom wrote to explain the relationship that is blossoming between them, and then concluding, "Any advice?"

Nothing thrills the heart of a pastor more than when a Christ-following family is given this kind of kingdom opportunity by the Spirit, and is eager to make the most of it.

What are your 2014 Kingdom opportunities this year?  Have you thought about it?  If not, why not before this 1st week of January gets away from you?

Here was my advice to my inquirer.

First, pray fervently for the Holy Spirit to lead and do the heart work.  From everything I understand from Scripture and theology, we plant and water, and must do so with loving as our lead.  But it is God who gives the increase.  It is the Spirit who persuades, draws, convicts, and gives birth.  What kingdom opportunities are you praying about already in this year?

Second, be patient and wait for good, Spirit-directed opportunities to share the truth claims of Jesus.  Yes, there are many gods in our world, but God the Son clearly and compassionately insisted that there is One True God and that He is the way home to our Creator and Redeemer.

Third, get your hands on a tool that can equip.  Read it (or listen to it) and use it.  Good resources abound about which can help "sharpen your saw" so that you are the best tool possible in the hands of the Spirit.  You can always do a topic search at a Christian Book website for the tool you need.

My encouragement?  Assess the Kingdom opportunities God is setting before you, and start praying for a fruitful year of impact and ministry in the lives of others.  Who knows what the Spirit might do, through all of us Jesus-followers this year.