Pastor Mitch McDonald, Sun Lakes Community Church

It is now February. One month of 2024 has already flown by. At this point, many of us have either succeeded in accomplishing some goals for 2024 or failed. Personally, I am not one to usually make a lot of resolutions, but having goals in our lives is important, no matter what age, stage, or season of life we find ourselves in.

One great example of that is a man named Bill Russell. Many sports fans will remember that name. Bill was one of the NBA’s top players in the 1960s. What most don’t know is that Bill Russell was not even good enough to make his high school basketball team until his senior year. Why? Because he lacked the skills that he needed. So, how did he finally make the team? He persisted. He kept working to develop the skills he needed until he finally achieved his goal. His persistence allowed him to rise to the top of a profession in a way that most will never achieve. In fact, during his career, Bill Russell was able to lead his Boston Celtics teammates to win the NBA Championship 11 times in 13 years. This was an unprecedented accomplishment. So, here’s the question for us today: What if Bill would have quit his junior year and said, “I just can’t get it done.” Literally, history would have been rewritten, not just for Bill, but for the Celtics and the entire National Basketball Association.

I hope this story challenges you. I hope that you realize that just because January is over, it’s not too late for each of us to take the opportunity to evaluate and refocus what we want to do in this year and beyond. If you are like me, you can identify a number of goals you have not achieved yet, but no matter what the circumstance, no matter how much we feel like we’ve blown it, we cannot give up. When we remain in the game, when we continue to build our skills, we continue to move closer to the goals and hopes that we have set for a new year. In fact, I’m encouraged through God’s Word that I will not give up. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

I take comfort in the reminder that I am not pressing on by myself, but can depend on God. Whether you share that belief or not, please know that I’m praying for you and me as we seek to accomplish the goals that God has set before us in 2024.