The promise of a new year is the promise of a fresh start. Indeed, God is a God of fresh starts! “His steadfast love never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” (Lam 3:22-23). As the new year dawns, so does another chapter in your faith. Here are twenty-five ways to grow in your faith this coming year. Please note that these are not laws or obligations, but practices and disciplines that help facilitate the strengthening of our faith!

1. Commit to a local church.

It may seem surprising for church to be at the top of the list. But I have placed it here intentionally. The local church is the primary place where we are to grow in our relationship with Jesus. It is the soil where the seed of our faith will be watered, fed, and strengthened through participating in worship, hearing the Word preached, observing the sacraments, and fellowshipping with other believers. Commit to a local church if you want to grow.

2. Expose yourself to the Word consistently.

The goal is not to check off days in a reading plan, but to regularly expose our hearts to God’s Word in various ways. Take seriously the preaching of the Word on Sunday mornings. Find a Bible-reading plan and stick with it. Read a Psalm a day. Listen to the Bible on audio. Find a time and a place every day to read the Word. Find whatever works for you, and stick with it!

3. Memorize scripture.

Don’t just read God’s Word. Memorize it. Memorize specific verses that standout when you’re reading or follow a specific Bible memorization plan (you can find several online). Use note cards or an app on your phone. Start small; something is better than nothing! Memorizing scripture not only exposes you to God’s Word, it writes His Word on your heart.

4. Give attention to your prayer life.

We all know we should pray and most of us want to pray, but we often become overwhelmed by the prospect of prayer that we end up not praying at all. I have found in my own life that when I don’t give attention to my prayer life, I don’t pray nearly as much. Or at least I don’t pray for the things I should.

Sure, some prayer should be spontaneous, but regular, intentional prayer comes though specific attention and planning. Consider praying for your church on Mondays, your family on Tuesdays, your co-workers on Wednesdays, and so on. Find a schedule that works for you. Keep a list ( I do this digitally), and pray through it regularly!

5. Practice confession, repentance, and thanksgiving.

Don’t just pray for things and people. Search your heart. Where have you sinned against God, or against others? What have you worshiped and serve besides him? Confess it to him, and turn from it. Keep short accounts with God. Regular confession and repentance remind us of God’s grace and removes the seeds of guilt and shame that can take root in our hearts. Take the time also to give thanks to God for all that he has given you in Christ and everything you have to be thankful for in him.

6. Find ways to serve.

Use your gifts, talents, and interests to serve the body of Christ, your family, and/or your community. Or just volunteer to be there to help. I have found myself the most satisfied working with fellow believers doing the most menial tasks for a common purpose: we are serving Jesus.

7. Give generously.
Do you want to know a good antidote to materialism, greed, and selfishness? Give generously. Give your resources, time, and effort. Start with your local church. There is more blessing in giving than in receiving (Acts 20:35). Pray and look for opportunities to give, and take advantage of them!

8. Make Sunday worship a priority.

Make Sunday morning worship the highlight of your week. Commit to it. Make attendance a non-negotiable. Look forward to it with eager anticipation. Prepare your heart for it. Eat a big meal with your family on Saturday night and discuss your excitement about the coming day. Pray for your pastors, leaders, volunteers, and ask God to save the lost, edify His saints, and to glorify His Son through it. Come ready to sing worship to God and hear from God through His Word.

9. Pray with your spouse and/or family.

Pray every morning or evening with your spouse. Pray with your family regularly, not just at meal times. Pray for specific family needs. Pray for others. Pray for your children when they are sick. Pray for people in your family/friend group. Pray for your church. Pray for missionaries. Pray with the nations. Commit to being a praying family.

`10. Join/Invest in a small group.

If your church has life groups or small groups, join one. If you’re in one, invest in it. Attend regularly. Learn names. Invite people to your home. Go to lunch together. Get to know people and walk through life with them. Ask how you can pray for them, and do it!

11. Learn to share the gospel and your testimony.

Read several gospel illustrations and decide which one resonates best with you (The Bridge; Three Circles; God, Man, Christ, Response). Practice sharing it alone. You may eventually develop your own way of sharing the gospel, and that is fine too! Learn to share your testimony by listing two words that describe your life before Christ and two words that describe your life after. Connect them with a sentence like, “There once was a time in my life when I was hopeless and without purpose, but then I met Jesus, and now my life is full of hope and I have found my purpose.”

12. Share the gospel and your testimony with people.

Pray for opportunities to share your testimony and to share the gospel with people. Open your eyes, God will provide them! Share boldly and confidently, and leave the rest with God!

13. Pray for others in their presence.

When you hear of a need, pray for it, right then and there. Some of the most powerful ministry opportunities I have been given has been in offering to pray for someone right then. Thank God for the gospel in your prayer (this is another way to share), and pray specifically for the person, asking God to bless them and reveal more of Himself to them.

14. Disciple someone (help someone follow Jesus).

If you’re one step ahead of someone in the faith, you can at least help them get to where you are. Ask another brother or sister in Christ to read the Bible with you or to meet regularly, pray together, and strengthen one another in your walk with Christ. Ask your local church about discipleship opportunities and be willing to lead. At our church, we have D-groups with specific manuals to equip leaders and walk them through how to make disciples.

15. Ask someone to mentor/disciple you.

Ask someone you respect to mentor and disciple you. Bear the burden of communication and planning in the relationship if you have to. Try to spend time with them regularly. Ask questions. Listen. Learn. Observe what they do well and model it (1 Cor 11:1).

16. Take care of your health.

Our body is a temple. The way we take care of it can be one of the many ways we worship God. Eat healthy, exercise regularly, and keep up with any doctor appointments or conditions you may have. View staying on top of your health as a spiritual discipline and a way you can honor God. Seek to be in the best shape you can be to do all that God has called you to do!

17. Study theology, beginning with the attributes of God.

Your faith will grow in direct proportion to the object of your faith. The greater your view of God, the more your faith will grow. Deepen your view of God by studying His attributes. The Attributes of God by Tozer is a great place to start with his attributes. Christian Beliefs by Grudem is a good starting point for the study of systematic theology. Find the books, podcasts, newsletters, etc. that work for you, and feast on them!

18. Practice disciplines such as fasting and solitude in God’s presence.

Fasting helps remove distractions and focuses our attention on God. Start with fasting a meal and build up to an entire day. Maybe try fasting the first day of each month. Try a modified fast like Daniel Fast (fruit and veggies only) or fast from from social media, TV, etc. In like manner, take time to regularly sit in silence before God, removing all distractions and just being with Him.

19. Journal prayers, including answers.

Write down some of your prayers. It doesn’t have to be everyone, maybe just the big ones or ones you feel like writing down. But look for answers to all of your prayers, and write them down! Write down things that you’re thankful for or ways you see God working in your life. It will be encouraging to you to look for these things and write them down, and for you to look back on later in life.

20. Read Christian books.

Christians are people of the word. Throughout the centuries, God’s people have been writing. Read what they’ve written! Read the classics like C.S. Lewis, Spurgeon, Tozer, and Augustine. Read Christian biographies. Eric Metaxas’ 7 Men and 7 Women is a good place to start. Find contemporary authors that resonate with you and strengthen your faith. A few of my favorites are Michael Reeves, Paul Tripp, and Timothy Keller.

21. Find an accountability partner.

Find someone who can help you maintain discipline in your walk with God. Find someone to do the same Bible reading plan with you. Confess your sins and/or weaknesses to each other. Share spiritual goals and prayer requests with each other and follow up. Encourage and pray for each other. You’ll likely develop a deep spiritual friendship!

22. Read missionary biographies.

Read biographies of those who have given their lives to serve Christ cross-culturally. It will encourage you to live boldly wherever God has called you. Some of my favorites are Hudson Taylor, Lottie Moon, and Adoniram Judson. 10 People Who Changed The World is a great place to start.

23. Pray for missionaries and the global church.

Pray for some of the missionaries that your church supports. If you don’t know some of their names, ask your local church. Pray for them in your time alone with God, or even with your family at meal times. Pray also for the global church, your brothers and sisters in the different countries around the world. Operation World is a great resource for this.

24. Attend a Christian conference and/or retreat.

Conferences or retreats are a great place to get refreshed and recharged in your faith. Be on guard, though, these conferences are no replacement for the local church! Rather than competing with, allow these conferences to strengthen your relationship with the local church by encouraging and equipping you to go back to your church and serve.

25. Learn apologetics.

Many people don’t share their faith because they are afraid they won’t be able to answer people’s questions. Many believers have questions themselves, but are too afraid to ask them. Study apologetics, the defense of the faith, through books, podcasts, and/or seminars. If you’re unsure where to start, just google “Top Evangelical Apologetics Podcasts” and dive in! Studying the credibility and reliability of the faith will certainly strengthen your faith.

There you have it! Twenty-five ways to grow in your faith in 2025. But remember, it is not we who grow ourselves, but the Spirit who grows us and conforms us into the image of Christ. It is good to discipline ourselves, but to do so knowing that we are fully dependent on God for the results. As Paul said, he sowed, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth (1 Cor 3:6). These suggestions are simply the sowing and watering of your faith. God will bring the growth!