This is the time of the year that many people will take simulants to make their celebration of the New Year--1998 more enjoyable. The dope pushers will be busy pushing their marijuana, cocaine, and other illegal drugs. The ABC stores will be busy selling their wine and alcohol, while the grocery stores that sell beer and wine will also have much financial profit themselves. It seems a bit ironic to me that to have a good time, you take something that will leave you with a headache the next morning, and will so drain you that it is difficult for you to get up the next day. That is certainly not a good time as I see it! The world has their stimulants, while the people of God have our own. Ours do not leave you with a hang-over, a head-ache, or so numb your brain that you injure yourself or someone else in an automobile accident. Alcohol is physiologically a depressant. Does it make sense to take a depressant to have a good time?

A "stimulant" is defined as: "that which stimulates." To "stimulate" is to "rouse or excite to action, to spur on." Thank God for the "spiritual stimulants" that the children of God have readily available each day we live.

I. God’s Soothing Peace. There is peace with God that comes at the time of salvation, and the peace of God which we possess as we love and obey the Lord from day to day. The peace of God does two main things. First, it "keeps"(guards) our hearts and minds(Phil.4:7), and it also "rules"(umpires)in our hearts (Col.3:15). When God’s peace has its proper place, worry has to flea in its presence.

II. God’s Strengthening Precepts. The Psalmist said in Ps 119:28,

" My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word." The Word of God or the Precepts of God, spur us on when we have to carry the "heavy things" of life. It may be a work problem, a home problem, a financial problem, a health problem, but the word of God rouses us when it would be so easy to quit and fall by the wayside.

III. God’s Sovereign Purposes. Romans 8:28 reminds us that all things work together for the good of them that love God. When circumstances seem from the devil, we are stimulated to trust God through them, when we realize the truth of Romans 8:28 comes before our minds- "all things work together." God is never uninformed about our situations in life. He is "beautiful for situation" (Ps.48:2). Whatever your situation is, He can manifest a purpose for your life.

I am chiefly speaking of resolutions or desires for our spiritual lives. Since a person who does not know the Lord cannot receive spiritual things. It is the child of God who desires to honor the Lord in all of his or her life. Here are some good resolutions

I. I Will Work For The Lord. 1 Cor. 15:58 says, "Your labor is not in vain in the Lord." The general tendency among church folks is to desire to sit on the sidelines and watch a few do most all of the work. All of God’s people should get involved in the work of the Lord through the local church in this year. Serving is not just for a few but for every child of God. If you are not willing to serve the Lord you should be ashamed of yourself! He went to Calvary’s cross for you.

II. I Will Worship The Lord. Ps.96:9 declares, "Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness, fear before Him, all the earth. I would resolve that when I come to church in this new year that every visit to the place the local church meets will be a time of worship experience. Worship is ascribing "worth-ship" to the Lord Jesus Christ. If we come to church just out of habit or because we feel it is the place to be on Sunday and Wednesday, then we may be falling short of worship. Make every church service a visit with the Lord.

III. I Will Witness For The Lord. See John 20:21. We are commanded by God to be a witness for Him. If we are filled with the Spirit of God, that will come supernaturally. Who do you want to tell of the Lord and what He has done for them in 1998?

IV. I Will Wait Upon The Lord. Read Isa. 40:31. To wait upon the Lord means to wait like a child before a parent to obey their command; to wait like a servant does on their master, to know their pleasure; like a beggar who comes to a door, knocks, then patiently waits. Let’s wait upon the Lord in 1998. His presence temporarily may appear to be hidden but if you will just wait, you will mount up with wings as does the eagle.

V. I Will War For The Lord. See Eph. 6:12 which says, "For we wrestle." God’s people face Satanic opposition in many ways, but we are wise to as Paul said, "Fight the good fight of faith" (1Tim.6:12).

Phillipians 1:21 says, "To live is Christ." Life is worth living when a person is rightly related to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Many in our society are taking their lives through suicide at an alarming rate, probably because they feel that life is no longer worth living. Paul by no means, had it easy or coasted through life. He spent a great deal of time in a Roman prison, and yet He could still say, "To live is Christ." He had a physical sickness but still he could declare, "To live is Christ." There are five ways I want to share with you as to how the Lord makes life worth living.

I. He gives us a conscience we can live with.

The conscience of course is that part of us that either commends us or condemns us. It either approves of our thoughts and actions or disapproves of them. One person said, "Take away alarmed consciences and you may as well close our churches." It is so important for a person’s conscience to work properly. Repeat sin can do much damage to a conscience.

II. He gives us a creed we can live by.

Oliver Wendall Holmes said, "It is faith in something that makes life worth living." Our faith is not just in something, but it is in the Word of God and the God of the Word. Our faith gives meaning to life. Can you image how difficult life would be without your faith in Christ Jesus?

III. He gives us a cause to live for.

We should not just want to live but should have a cause, a reason, or something to live for in this life. There should be an honorable driving motivation for us wanted to be alive. We have a gospel to preach, a people to help, and a Name(Jesus) to honor.

IV. He gives us a company to live in.

Good company is one of the most important things in life. If you run with the wrong crowd, instead of you pulling them up, they will probably drag you down. Most teenagers get into a great deal of trouble as a result of keeping company with the wrong kind of people.

If you run with godly people you will always be helped rather than hindered.

V. He gives us a consummation to live towards.

We live in a day when there is confusion about what is right. Several things bring this kind of condition.

First, there is the influence of humanism. The secular humanists would seek to rule God and the Bible out, so the gage of right and wrong, if there is such a thing to them, would be their own judgment and not a judgment outside of themselves. Secondly, there is the violated conscience. The conscience is that part of us that either commends our actions and attitudes, or condemns them. If it is continually violated it can become seared (1 Tim. 4:2) as something can by a hot iron. Thirdly, ignorance of the Word of God brings this condition into our lives. When one is clearly informed about what God says, there is no need to remain in ignorance.

Dr. Warren Wiersbe calls the "ignorant brethren" the largest denom- ination in the world. .

There are some things that are clearly right that I am going to mention to you: :

I. God’s Word is right. Ps 33:4 says, "For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth." There are those in our society who would seek to discredit the Bible. They would say it could not have held up since fallible men wrote it and it has been passed from generation to generation. That is a foolish assumption, for the God who "gave the Word" can "preserve the Word." When it comes to your own opinion or the Word of God, you would be wise to go with the Bible because it will always be right. It is the inspired, innerant, infallible Word of God.

II. God’s works are right. See Rom. 8:28. There are times some tradegy or unexpected trial comes into our lives, and we begin to ask God, "Why did this have to happen to me, to my loved one, or my friend?" I can assure you of one thing- whatever God does, or whatever God allows will be right. A perfectly holy and righteous God can do nothing but right. His ways may at times seem to twist and to turn, but rest assured, He does right. Job may have begun to wonder, when all the trials and losses befell him, but the patriarch said, "Though God slay me, yet will I trust Him" (Job 13:15).

COMING TO THE THRONE OF GRACE

Hebrews 4:16 says, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." We have an invitation of our Lord to enter his Divine Presence through prayer. We have to come across the threshold of the blood of Christ. Whatever else that it is, the place where we come to prayer is a "throne of grace." What happens when we come to the throne of grace?

I. It Puts Us In Our Right Place . When we come to God’s throne in prayer it shows us at least two things. First, it gives us a sense of our smallness. We know at once our littleness; and anything that teaches us that is good. You can get too big for God to use you, but you can never get too little. Secondly, it gives us a sense of our sinfulness. All we have to do is put our character beside His character, and we find ourselves to be a sinful people, in light of His infinite holiness.

II. It Shews Him In His True Light. What sort of person is it that sits on the throne of glory. Notice first, He is a Figure of Majesty. He is on a throne. When we realize that, we will not be frivolous in our prayers and we will not approach God with undue familiarity. Secondly, God is a Figure of Mercy. He sit upon a throne, but thank God it is a throne of grace; His seat is a mercy seat. Mercy involves God withholding what we do deserve.

III. It Presents Need In Its Real Proportions. Does our need seem to big for us? If it does then know that God knows how big it looks in our eyes and He will handle that need with an sense of "all knowledge."

Does your need seem as big as the "throne of grace?" You need to recall how the Apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, deals with "your need" in Phillipians 4:19. God says He will supply "all your need."