January 2025 Message From The President:

Dear Members of the Northeast Florida Christian Chamber,

Happy New Year! As we step into 2025, I pray this season finds you filled with hope and anticipation for all that God has planned. Each new year brings fresh opportunities to grow in faith, deepen relationships, and walk more closely with our Savior. It is my joy and privilege to journey alongside you as we seek to glorify Christ in our homes, workplaces, and communities.

As we consider our goals and priorities for the year, let us be reminded of the supreme importance of cultivating a discipline of Bible reading. But this discipline is not merely about completing a checklist or reading through the Bible in a year. While such plans can be helpful, the true aim is to let the Bible read us—to allow God’s Word to search our hearts, renew our minds, and transform our lives.

The Transforming Power of Scripture

Hebrews 4:12 reminds us that, “The Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” When we approach Scripture with humility, it shapes us in profound ways, exposing our sin, correcting our course, and anchoring us in God’s eternal truth.

John Owen, one of the great Puritan theologians, put it this way: “If the Word does not dwell with power in us, it will not pass with power from us.” As individuals and as a Chamber, our effectiveness in ministry and business hinges on the depth of our engagement with God’s Word.

A Heart Posture for Bible Reading

Instead of rushing to “get through” a passage, let us take time to meditate on it, asking the Lord to reveal Himself and to conform us to His image. Psalm 1:2-3 illustrates the blessing of this approach: “But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.”

As we read, let us also pray: “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!  And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" Psalm 139:23-24

Looking Ahead Together

As we embrace this discipline together in 2025, let us encourage one another to go deeper into God's Word.  May it be said of us as it was of the early believers in Acts 2:42 "And they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers."  I am excited for the opportunities we will have this year to gather, grow, and glorify God as a Chamber. Let us commit this year to the Lord, seeking His guidance and grace in every endeavor.

In His Service

Brad Sykes

President, Northeast Florida Christian Chamber of Commerceristian Chamber of Commerce