There's a question that echoes through the corridors of our faith journey, one that demands honest reflection: Why did you come?  Not just to church on Sunday morning, but to this moment in your life. What brought you here? Was it tradition? Obligation? Or did you come with a burning expectation to encounter the living God?

In the Old Testament, people came to the temple for one primary reason: to praise. They didn't come to be entertained or merely informed. They came to honor their Father, to spend time in His presence, to express gratitude for blessings already received and those yet to come.  This posture of gratitude changes everything. When we approach God with thanksgiving—not for what we can get, but simply because of who He is—we position ourselves to receive everything His hand has to offer. We came for Him. Not for programs, not for people, but for Him alone.

As we step into a new year, there's an urgency in the air. The return of Christ isn't just theological doctrine; it's imminent reality. The question isn't if He's returning, but what will He find us doing when He does?  This reality should ignite a fire within us. We shouldn't give God the same lukewarm worship we offered last year. We shouldn't live with the same level of commitment or passion. Instead, we should live as people who belong to Him—talking like we belong to Him, acting like we've been bought with a price.  When that trumpet sounds and the sky cracks open, He's coming for His own. Not for the world. For His own. That truth should radically transform how we live every single day.

Jesus asked His disciples a piercing question: "Could you not watch with me for one hour?" (Matthew 26:40). There's profound significance in that specific timeframe.  The first fifteen minutes of prayer are often spent pushing past our flesh—making mental grocery lists, planning our day, battling distraction. By the thirty-minute mark, heaven begins to take notice of our consistency. But it's at the one-hour mark that something supernatural happens: God begins to drop secrets.  Secrets about your future. Secrets about your finances. Secrets about relationships and calling. The invisible realm opens up, and God begins working with you—not just for you, but with you—about what's ahead.
This is where angels are activated. This is where visitation occurs. This is the place of divine partnership where heaven and earth collaborate for your destiny.

Matthew 22:37-40 lays out the greatest commandments: Love God with everything you have—heart, soul, and mind. Then love your neighbor as yourself. Everything else hangs on these two commands. This isn't just religious instruction; it's the blueprint for transformation. When we live for God first, spending time in His presence and renewing our minds in His Word, we receive from His reservoir. Then—and only then—can we authentically love others. The problem arises when we try to give to others from our own empty wells. When we're operating in flesh rather than Spirit, we have nothing of eternal value to offer. Arguments, dissension, and disagreements flourish because two people in the flesh can't produce spiritual fruit.

The church exists to empower individuals to encounter God and experience transformation. Notice the sequence: encounter first, then transformation. Transformation doesn't happen through information alone. It happens through supernatural encounters with the living God. And these encounters don't require dramatic demonstrations or falling out in the Spirit (though God can move that way). Sometimes God transforms a life with the slightest movement—a whisper, a touch, a moment of divine intervention. One testimony stands out: after prayer for breaking mind-binding spirits, someone drove away from church and immediately threw their vaping devices out the window on the highway. One encounter. Complete transformation. They haven't touched it since. That's the power of creating an atmosphere where God can move and people participate in faith.

True growth isn't just about filling seats. It's about developing spiritual power. Many churches in America can draw crowds but have no power. They can't cast out demons. They can't see healing manifest. They can't operate in the supernatural authority Jesus demonstrated. The goal must be freedom in every area of life—physically, financially, socially, mentally, emotionally. Complete liberation. This requires discipleship, not just church attendance. Jesus didn't command us to make more Christians; He commanded us to make disciples. Discipleship is messy. It takes time, patience, and commitment. It means getting in the dirt with someone, helping them stand, teaching them to walk. But this is how ministry multiplies—elders pouring into the younger generation, creating a chain of spiritual inheritance that never stops.

Success in the Christian life is determined by one critical factor: who you're hearing from. Many believers aren't where God desires them to be—not because He isn't leading, but because they're not listening correctly. We listen to everyone else and receive wrong information, wrong instruction, and our lives end up nowhere near our God-ordained destiny. Learning to hear God's voice, to discern His leading from the noise of culture, flesh, and the enemy, is perhaps the most crucial skill a believer can develop.

So the question returns: Why did you come?
If you came expecting transformation, you're positioned to receive it. If you came just to check a religious box, you'll leave the same way you entered. But if you came for Him—truly for Him—everything changes. Make a decision today to make God bigger than your circumstances, bigger than your emotions, bigger than people's opinions. Because He is your God, your Father, and Jesus is your Lord. 

The year ahead holds landmines of blessings—divine appointments already scheduled in months you haven't reached yet. Your steps are pre-ordered. The question is: will you walk in them? Will you commit to the hour of prayer? Will you pursue discipleship? Will you live as though you truly belong to Him? Heaven is watching. Your destiny is waiting. And God is ready to move.
Why did you come?