Ephesians 4:25-27 - Preparing to Seek the Lord Daily in 2026

Paulhighlights five specific sins that must be put away from our lives. Even asbelievers, we still have to deal with these tendencies—these sins—that candestroy unity in our families, unity in our churches, unity in our communities,and even unity in our nation. We see these sins rampant all around us today. Thefirst sin Paul addresses is lying. He tells us plainly to put off lying and tospeak the truth to one another. We live in a country today that is saturatedwith lies. It almost seems as if people breathe them out. Proverbs speaks ofthis more than once, where Solomon says that the wicked “breathe out lies.”When I read that in the ESV, it paints a vivid picture—it’s as though theycannot even breathe without a lie coming from their mouth. Myfriend, that should never be said of believers. Believers speak the truthbecause we know the truth. We live in the truth. We walk in the truth, as FirstJohn and Second John tell us. Truth is foundational to the Christian life. Thattruth is found in Jesus Christ and in a life committed to Him. Thisbecomes especially important as we prepare for a new year. As believers, wemust ask the Lord to give us hearts that truly seek after Him. Scripture tellsus to seek the Lord with all our heart, to lean not on our own understanding,and that we will find Him when we search for Him with all our heart (Read Proverbs2:1-5; 3:1-5; Jeremiah 29:13). That means intentionally setting aside time eachday to seek God. Iwas thinking again about something we mentioned yesterday—the tyranny of theurgent. Urgent things demand immediate attention: taking the children toschool, picking them up, getting meals prepared, making phone calls, changingdiapers, washing dishes, cleaning the house, getting ready for work, mowing thegrass, fixing the plumbing, paying the bills, and a host of other things. Theseare important responsibilities—but they are not the most important thing. It isso sad that so many of us will spend a lifetime staying busy doing the urgentthings and then realize that we never took care of the important things.Usually this is because the urgent things demand immediate attention while theimportant things can be put off till tomorrow! Myfriend, I remind you that the most important thing we should be doing every dayis seeking and knowing the Lord and His righteousness (Read Matthew 6:24-34).We do this by daily spending time with God, placing value on the people aroundus, encouraging them, and living a life that truly makes a difference in theworld. The only way we can live that way daily is by being filled with the HolySpirit. And when we are filled with God’s Word, we will also be filled withGod’s Holy Spirit. Aswe approach a new year, I cannot encourage you enough to take at least 15minutes a day to get alone with the Lord. Wake up 15 minutes earlier. Find aquiet place. Spend time asking God for direction for your day. Read Scripture.Use a devotional. We post devotionals on our Facebook page and on our website (https://www.pmiministries.org/),along with a daily Bible reading calendar. Even while driving to work, you canlisten to Scripture through your phone—there are so many ways available today.  Asyou fill your mind with God’s Word, it replaces other voices, other influences,and you begin to walk in the truth and speak the truth to yourself and others. Sofirst, Paul tells us to put off lying. Instead, we are to speak the truth,because the truth lives in us through the Word of God. That’s my encouragementto you today.  Godbless you as you prepare for a New Year in 2026—as you walk in the truth, asyou live the truth, and as you seek after God through His Word and throughprayer.