Summary: There are two sets of people making their entry into the New Year 2012. There are those who are in it merely to pass through; and there are other who are in it to possess it. Everyone has to make a determination whether they want to pass through it or pos

You are not in 2012 just to pass through it, you are in it to possess it

You are not here to fail, you are here to prevail

God didn’t bring you all the way here to disappoint you; He brought you here to promote you

If God didn’t want you to succeed in 2012, you would not have made it into 2012. When you slept on December 31st 2011, you would not have woken up to see January 1st 2012. It is His intension for you to succeed in 2012; for you to breakthrough; for you to thrive; for you to soar. In Jeremiah 29:11 He says His thought towards you are good, to bring you to a glorious 2012

God did not take the pains to bring you here only to disappoint you, He didn’t bother to bring you all the way into 2012 so you could fail. The children of Israel though God brought them all the way from Egypt to consume them in the wilderness. They said to Moses in Exodus 14:11: ‘Are there no graves in Egypt that you have brought us into the wilderness to kill us?’ God would never bother to bring you into 2012 so He could disappoint you, He brought you here to succeed; He brought you here to breakthrough. The fact that you are here is evidence that you will succeed in 2012

You are not in 2012 to make up the number; you are here to make it count

You are not in 2012 to pass through it, you are here to possess it

To possess means to own, make it your own; to make it count; to fulfil God plans for your life; to thrive; to soar; to breakthrough; to increase; to dominate; to subdue; to enlarge.

I see two sets of people in 2012. There are those who will merely pass through it and there are those who will possess it.

Those who pass through are those who end the year where they started it

Those who are in the same place on December 31st as they were on January 1st

They are those who leave the year exactly as they entered it

Those who cannot pinpoint any difference between their January 1st and December 31st

You have not come this far to fail; you have come too far to fail now

You have been through storms, you have been through hell and high water but you are still afloat; you are still standing. You did not drown in the storms of 2011; you will not drown now. You have made it too far to drown here; you have come too far too far to fail now

You have not made through the storms of 2011 just to drown in 2012

You didn’t make it through the tribulations of 2011 only to drown in 2012

What you do with this year depends on you. Where you end up on December 31st 2012 depends entirely on you. Whether you pass through it or possess it is your call.

Here are some tips on how to possess the year:

1. Prioritise God. Whatever you do, put God first because whatever it is you are looking for; whatever it is you are looking to achieve is in the hands of God. Everything belongs to Him and promotion comes only from Him. Psalms 24:1; 75:6 – you want advancement, a new job, a new business, child of the womb, perfect health – all belongs to God. A lot of people struggle through life because God is not in their plans - if God is not in it, you will struggle through it. Psalms 127:1; says ‘Except the Lord builds, those who build, do it in vain’

2. Get a vision for the year. If you have no vision for 2012, it is better to have died in 2011. Proverbs 29:18 says where there is no vision the people perish. There is no point being in 2012 if you do not know what to do with it. A man without vision is a man without sight, without direction.

3. Join your vision with that of your spouse. Collaborate with spouse to unite both your visions and make them one. You cannot afford to do things separately. Two heads are better than one (Eccl 4:9) There is a definite strength in unity (Deut 32:30). A house divided against itself cannot stand (Mark 3:25) You can achieve so much together than separately

4. Put a plan in place to achieve your vision. A plan is the roadmap to achieve your vision; it is what takes you to your destination (Luke 14:28). In substance there is no difference between 2011 and 2012 – both have 12 months, both have summer, winter, autumn and spring, Both carry problems disappointments, heartaches etc. The only thing that would make 2012 different is the plan that you put in place and your doggedness and determination to achieve it. No matter how brilliant your vision is, you cannot achieve it without a plan.

5. Be passionate about your vision. Ideally break your plan into smaller, achievable goals and make certain to check your plan periodically to be sure you are still on the right track in attaining your overall vision

6. Put away sin. The word church is translated from the Greek work Ecclesia which means – called out. You have been called out of the world, separated from sin. Though you are in the world but you are not of the world. Grace cannot abound while you continue in sin (Romans 6:1) Sin diminishes the power of God to work in your life. As a matter of fact sin separates you from God (Isaiah 59:1-2)

7. Be expectant of good things. Develop a positive mindset of expectation. Expect favour; expect help; expect good news. Good things come to those who expect. God does not meet you at the point of your need but at the point of your expectation. Be expectant. Be hopeful. Only expectant mothers give birth.

2012 is your year of promise; it is your promise land. The big question therefore is: Are you going to pass through it or are you going to possess it?