Grace and peace be yours

We bless God for another year. In spite of what 2021 brought us, including COVID-19, we must embrace this life as a gift. What we do with this gift in 2022 is what will enable us to manage the challenges. So how do we survive in 2022?

Let me propose that in faith, you must see 2022 as your year of breakthrough. What you see will determine your manifestations. As with Jeremiah, when you’re asked, “What seest thou?” (Jeremiah 1) may you see yourself and others overcoming instead of being defeated.

Towards the end of 2021, I had a vision of how we will survive 2022. The Lord revealed that we will not survive without the three Ds: determination, development, and divine help. He showed me the story of Jephthah, in Judges 11:1-28, as a relevant scriptural reference. In essence, Jephthah had everything stacked against him from birth. He was the son of a prostitute, which his half-brothers used as a reason to kick him out of his family home, with no chance of inheritance. However, Jephthah was still described as a mighty man of valour. The story proved his determination, personal development, and his willingness to seek divine help.

During Jephthah’s absence, the enemy began a war against the Israelites to take land that they said didn’t belong to them. Recognising the warrior spirit of their half-brother, his siblings and elders went to beg him to return home to assist in the fight against the enemy. Jephthah acceded on one condition. They committed to making him leader in the army. Jephthah’s life helps us to see that the three Ds are necessary to make it in 2022.

DETERMINATION

Jephthah saw the land of Israel as a gift from God, and so when the enemy threatened to take it, he was resolute that this wouldn’t happen. What a determination! For 2022, you must show determination in the face of adversity. Your determination means you approach life with intentionality because without it, regression takes place.

DEVELOPMENT

Jephthah could be described as a developed man. If he hadn’t acquired the skills and knowledge to lead in battle, the elders would not have made the journey personally to beg him to return to lead in the fight to keep their land.

Your personal development must be an intrinsic part of your life if you are going to survive in 2022 and beyond. You must never stop growing yourself; never stop sharpening your skills in your profession or career choice.

DIVINE HELP

Jephthah recognised the importance of the presence of God in his life and the lives of his people. He sought the Lord for victory, and he received it.

We who are believers will contend that we cannot do anything successfully without divine help. These Scriptures prove it:

Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Romans 9: 16 – It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.

I propose to you that if you follow the 3-D principle of living life by Determination, Development, and Divine help, you will survive 2022. This principle will help to eliminate disorder and disunity. I have encouraged my church to adopt Job 22:28 for 2022: “Thou shalt also decree a thing and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.”

Believe it! Dream it! See it! Live it!

Bishop Courtney McLean is the senior pastor at Worship and Faith International Fellowship, located at 55A Old Harbour Road, Spanish Town, St Catherine.

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