(singing) Duh duh duh duh DUH dun dun bewn newn buh nuh nuh NUH bewn newn der rawrn
Rocky. That's one of the songs (with English accent) "from the Rocky". From the Rocky TV show.
It's called a movie. it's called a movie. It's called a moving pictures.
(normal voice) I was moving pictures! Ha! It was a moving—I was just moving pictures.
(in grand voice) Merry New Year!
My name is Father Mike Schmitz and this is Ascension Presents.
So whenever it comes to the New Year, I get so excited.
I get excited because it's kind of one of those moments where people globally, universally, all across the land,
are interested in change.
I love that
because that's one of the things that as human beings, we're made for more, but we don't always choose more.
And so it's one of those times when we can get inspired.
Speaking of inspiration, when I was a kid, I, well not "when I was a kid"—
I still ... when I was a kid, I loved—
as a grown man, I still continue to love— like the Rocky movies, right?
So they figured out by Rocky II—they figured out like the number-one thing about the Rocky movies
is the training montage, right?
I mean, honestly, they got it down to such a science that in Rocky 4, where he fought Ivan Drago,
you should watch this: there are two training montages back-to-back like two—
he's in Russia, training in the mountains, you know, and this whole, kind of, in the middle of the snow—
he's training, these two training montages with two different songs, back-to-back,
separated by, I think like 43 seconds worth of Adrian comes and says,
(high-pitched voice) "I couldn't stay away from you, Rocky."
(low gruff voice) He's like, "OK, well you're here now, so let's uh, let's go train some more."
(normal voice) I remember seeing Rocky 4 with my siblings and going home and like,
"OK, how do we do this?" Like, "How do we do those sit-ups like he did?"
and "How do we do all these other lifts and all these kind of things?"
because you see that kind of thing, and you get so inspired.
It's like, "I want to just take on the world,"
and yet, when it comes to change,
it's not just simply the inspiration.
It's not simply the training montage that actually makes it happen.
In fact, there's this man, I think his name is Dave Brailsford.
I came across an article about him a number of years ago.
In 2010, Dave Brailsford, he became the head coach of Team Sky, which is Great Britain's number one cycling team
and he was charged with a task: to get Team Sky to win the Tour de France.
And he thought that if he did it right, if he coached right, they could win in five years.
He was wrong.
They won in three years. (hah)
And I think it was 2012, 2013 and they asked him like,
"What was it about your coaching that raised the team to such incredible heights,
like to be the best team in the world in cycling?"
So this article was talking about like minimal aggregate gains.
Another way to say it is, kind of this 1 percent rule.
And the 1 percent rule was, we're gonna improve ourselves just by 1 percent every day.
Just do something small to help you move towards where it is that you want to be.
So what that demands is a couple things:
One: is it demands that I have a clear sense of who I'm called to be.
So as a Christian, do I have a clear sense of the kind of person that God is calling me to be?
In the beginning of this new year, is I'm looking ahead like,
What kind of person do I really believe God wants me to be by the end of this year?
And just have a vision of that. I invite you to actually pray about that.
To even write it down.
To write down like what are the qualities, what are the virtues, where is it that God wants me to go this year?
You know, closer to his heart.
What is it that God wants me to do this year? Does he want me to take steps in faith?
Does he want me to wait?
Who is it God wants me to be this year?
But also, that, you know, Dave Brailsford, that coach, that idea of the 1 percent is
Now what are the small steps, not the huge steps, not the steps when I came back from watching Rocky 4,
like "We're gonna do this! We're gonna train like non-stop now."
But just, what are the small steps? What are the 1 percent improvements that I can make,
that will just get me closer and closer and closer to that vision that God has planted in my heart,
that God has planted in your heart?
This is called being faithful.
A lot of times when it comes to faithfulness, you know especially as believers,
we sometimes think that faithfulness is when you have a lot of faith that means you really feel it a lot.
That's not necessarily the case.
To be faithful is, essentially, I might say, I'll boil it down to two things.
To be faithful is to keep your promises
and to be faithful is to keep your promises consistently.
So do you have a lot of faith?
"Well, I don't know. Sometimes I feel it, sometimes I don't feel it."
That's not the question.
Am I consistent in choosing the Lord?
Well, if no, then I'm not faithful.
If yes, then I'm faithful.
Am i consistent in repenting when I fall?
If no, then I'm not faithful. If yes, then even in the midst of failure,
even in the midst of sin, I remain faithful because I consistently choose him when I fail.
I consistently choose him when I fall.
So when it comes to this new year, my invitation for all of us is this:
is not to rely on intensity
because intensity lasts for only a short time
but consistency
will beat intensity every time.
And consistency is faithfulness.
I know some people get really worked up because they're like, "I'm just kind of lukewarm about my faith
and so when it comes to that change, when it comes that vision that God has planted in my life,
like I kind of could take it or leave it. Sometimes, I don't really care.
What do I do when I don't care?"
You might think that the answer is, "Be inspired!"
The answer is, "Go watch a movie that's inspiring," or "Read a book that's inspiring,"
Or "Read about a saint that's inspiring."
If that helps you, that's wonderful.
But I'm guessing that, if my emotions are lukewarm, the answer is not rouse up your emotions.
The answer is: take action.
Like to take a step,
to move.
Do something.
And not gonna, because I want to be the kind of person who's like
I'm not gonna wait from for my emotions to catch up with where I'm supposed to be
because you have the ability to choose the good, you have the ability to choose that vision,
you have the ability to choose God, even when you don't feel like it.
Why?
Because you are made in God's image and likeness.
You have an intellect and a will that can rule and can guide your emotions
as opposed to being a slave to your emotions.
So "I'm lukewarm, I don't really care anymore."
"I'm not afraid about that."
Choose God
and be faithful in that choice.
Be consistent in that choice.
God has placed a vision in your life for who he wants you to be at the end of this year,
choosing that faithfully, just 1 percent, 1 percent every day,
ends up resulting in the kind of person
God wants you to be.
Lastly, it says 1st Corinthians chapter 15 verse 58
I just really love this.
St. Paul, he says this, he says, "Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters,
be firm,
steadfast
always fully devoted to the work of the Lord,
knowing that in the Lord, your labor is not in vain."
Be firm,
steadfast,
consistent,
faithful,
knowing that each step,
each step taken in the name of the Lord
is not done in vain.
This is gonna be a great year.
God has placed a vision in your life
and you now have the ability to be faithful,
consistent,
to taking action towards that vision.
From all of us here at Ascension Presents,
and Happy New Year!
God bless.
(off-screen) Also, be sure to like and subscribe because...
then you get the videos ...
and I guess if you didn't subscribe you wouldn't get ...
you would still get the videos.
Yeah, whatever.
I don't know how videos work
(HA!)