Happy New Year! 2020

Happy New Year! I’m going to begin by confessing that I did not stay up to see the new year in, but that is not unusual for me. In my lifetime I’ve probably been asleep more often on New Year’s Eve than I have been awake. One of the benefits of rising early on New Year’s Day is that on my bicycle ride this morning I practically had the road to myself.

I am looking forward to the new year with great anticipation. I believe that last year was a time of positioning or repositioning. We have a new identity in E4 Ministry Network and our upcoming conference will be hosted in a new location and we have a lineup of speakers that will challenge and encourage us. We will be making an announcement in the coming months about a Bible College. I believe that 2020 will be a year of breakthrough and new vision. It has not escaped my attention that 20/20 represents good vision.

I would encourage each one of us to read and study more in the coming year. It requires discipline and planning, but the rewards are many. I would also challenge you to read authors that you might not agree with, but nevertheless, you may find things that enlighten and bless. I remember going into my grandfather’s study and seeing a book by someone whose theology was not in alignment with what we believe, and I questioned him as to why he had this volume on the shelf. I still remember his reply to this day, “Sometimes you need to remove the bones before enjoying the meal.”

My favorite books from last year included “So Send I You” by Oswald Chambers, “The Day the Revolution Began: Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus’s Crucifixion” by N. T. Wright and also David Wilkerson’s devotional, “God Is Faithful: a Daily Invitation Into the Father Heart of God.”

My prayer for you in this new year is that God will lead and guide you and open doors of opportunity for you to be a blessing and to advance the cause of the Gospel wherever you go.

Steve Ekeroth, E4 Ministry Network