There are 5 spiritual goals you can tackle in 2025. These goals are not competitive. It doesn’t matter how well someone else does, you can accomplish these goals on your own. We talked about setting goals for the coming year as opposed to resolutions because resolutions tend to be easy to break. Goals suggest a striving toward something. Strive toward these 5 things and when you look back on the year, you will see a stunning enhancement in your spiritual life.
Pray More
Intimate time with God should come naturally to the Christian. It should be as easy as taking your next breath. But oftentimes, it’s not. It could be that our lives are so busy that we don’t take the time to pray. Or it may be that we just never developed the habit of prayer. There is another possibility, however. Could it be that you are embarrassed to pray? It’s sure happened to me — it’s like you have to re-introduce yourself to the Father!
Jesus, in the most intense moments of his life prayed to his Father (Matthew 26:36). The longest recorded prayer in the Bible occurs in John 17 when Jesus again prayed to the Father. Some call this the High Priestly Prayer. The apostle Paul encourages Christians to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Obviously Paul doesn’t mean that we walk through life with our eyes closed always in prayer to the exclusion of everything else. But it does suggest that we are to always be prayerfully minded and in frequent conversation with our God.
Read More
Very closely related prayer is Bible reading. Whereas in prayer, we speak to God, when we read the Scriptures, God speaks to us. And, like prayer, Bible reading should be habitual.
God has always pointed his people to his Scriptures. Many things mark the uniqueness of Scripture above all of the books that have ever been written. Most notable is that the Bible is the inspired word of God (2 Timothy 3:16). His Holy Spirit delivers God’s word to inspired Bible writers (2 Peter 1:21). So then, as we read, we take in the revealed thoughts and intents of our Creator.
As Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:8). Are you empty? Are you hungry for more? Do you need sustenance beyond what the world offers? Seek the eternal nourishment that comes only from the word of God.
Think of Others More
To think of others more is a radical departure from today’s me-first culture.. Would you agree that, as a society, we have begun to look inward at ourselves and what we want far too much rather than what other people need?
Jesus is the opposite example. When feet needed washing, Jesus did it (John 13:1-20). Choosing to leave the glories of heaven, Jesus bound himself in the flesh of earthly men and suffered the typical trials and tribulations just like us, but he also suffered the humiliation and the injustice of those who crucified him.
Jesus’ example is powerful. But he also reminds us of important commands to care for others. Our Lord said the 2nd greatest command, right behind loving God with all of our heart, soul, and mind, is to “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39). This teaching parallels what Jesus had already said in the sermon on the Mount. “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12). Surely we understand that to think more of others means we will be busy serving others more.
Serve More
The story of Jesus is the story of a servant Savior. If we are to be followers of his, we should adopt his style of life in all that we do, including serving others.
There are at least 3 different ways that we can serve other people. Most importantly, we serve them spiritually. Jesus calls us to share the good news with everyone (Matthew 28:18, 19). We are told to watch out for each other spiritually (Galatians 6:1, 2). Second, we serve others emotionally (Romans 12:15). There is plenty of pain and loneliness in our world. Each crisis is your chance to serve. Third, we serve others physically. The very 1st Christians gave us a pattern of caring for each other and making sure that no one had needs that were not met (Acts 2:41-47).
Be More Courageous
The four steps already mentioned are demanding as is the life of a dedicated Christian. To set out with these goals in mind requires commitment. I know you take your commitments seriously and do not make them without thinking first. To commit to these five goals requires courage. You will find yourself in a very small group of people. There are very few people who desire to strengthen their spiritual life. It’s very sad, but I’m sure you know it is reality.
Some followers of Jesus left Jesus when his teachings became too difficult to comprehend (John 6:66). They lacked courage. When Jesus was arrested and crucified, his own apostles melted in fear of their own arrest (John 20:19). Have you ever noticed that not one of the apostles helped prepare Jesus for burial? They were afraid. It’s easy, and very acceptable today, to surrender to opposition in a moment of trouble. Will you stand with Jesus?
In the coming year I pray that you will have the courage to adopt these goals in your own life. I also pray that you will have the courage to stand against the world and stand with Jesus. May we all be more courageous in the coming year than we were in the past.
I would be most grateful if you would leave a comment below. Any applause, criticism, thought, or request would be appreciated.
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