Happy New Year's Eve // M-Note 12.31.2025

I just completed my 20th Christmas as pastor of The Gathering. I want to thank all of you that made The Gathering part of your Christmas celebration. Christmas Eve services were incredible, and I loved seeing all the pictures on social media. I will fully celebrate Christmas Eve when I launch our new series on January 11. But today, don’t forget:

• Share the Christmas Eve message with someone who might need to hear it.

• You can also still give to the Christmas Eve offering here by choosing ‘Give one time’ to fund ‘Mozambique’. 

• On January 11, I will start a new series, Shift Happens: When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned. This is a great time to create a new worship habit. Remember that many people start the new year looking for a change, so invite someone else to join you.  

Speaking of new habits, I know a lot of us are thinking about changes that we want to make in our life. Most of us also have a healthy skepticism about this time of year. We have made resolutions that are easy to speak but hard to follow through on. Instead of grand resolutions, I encourage you to think of habits that you want to adopt for the new year. Consistent behavior over time changes us in profound ways.

Several years ago, I preached a series called Clean Slate in which I talked about 4 principles that can help you create new habits that can change the direction of your life.

Principle 1: Less but better. Change often fails when we try to do too much or when we add new things to an already busy life. Instead, commit to what is most important for you and let go of the rest.

Principle 2: Start small. Jesus once taught his disciples that a tiny mustard seed, over time, creates a huge shrub. He was illustrating the idea that change might start small but when repeated overtime, it leads to big changes.

Principle 3: Power of Habits. Motivation and intentions are less important than new habits. Pick something new that you will do in the new year and create a habit that is easy for you to repeat.

Principle 4: Rest is required. Attack busyness in your life to create margin. Margin gives you the space for change, and time to rest from the energy change requires.

It has been an incredible year, and I cannot wait to start the new one alongside all of you. Have a safe and fun week, and I will see you in church this weekend!

Peace,
Matt

P.S. You can make an end of year gift to The Gathering online here and help us to start the new year in a strong position. If you have questions, you can reach out to Dave Dietrich.