Every new year brings fresh hope, but for many people it also brings a familiar frustration – new calendar, same struggles. In this opening message of the Start Here series, Pastor Chris Fluitt explores what it means to feel stuck and how Jesus offers more than motivation. Through the story of Peter’s empty nets in Luke 5 and Jesus’ teaching on wise foundations in Matthew 7, this message shows how God gives direction, vision, and a new future to people who are ready to follow Him.

Start Here Hub – Learn about the full Start Here series and access resources to help you stay focused this year.

Download the Start Here Journal – A free 21-day, Jesus-centered journal designed to help clarify direction.

Join the Start Here Facebook Group – A private community for encouragement and accountability.

Start Here 1: Stuck Again? How to See and Move Toward Your Future
Chris Fluitt – January 4, 2026
Key Scriptures: Luke 5:1–11; Matthew 7:24, 26; Matthew 4:19
Big Idea: A new year doesn’t change your life. Direction does. When a goal has a plan, it becomes vision, and vision gives every area of life a foundation that can actually last.

I want you to know where this series is headed.

Start Here: Tired of Resolutions? Build a Life that Lasts.

This series is called Start Here because most people want change, but they don’t know where to begin or how to keep going.

These messages build on each other, and I really want you to be here for the whole series.

The next weeks:

January 11 – Burned Out on Resolutions?
Small steps are how lasting change actually happens.

January 18 – Why You Won’t Fail This Year: The Habit Fix
The right habits remove the pressure to rely on motivation.

January 25 – Find Your Next Step: Discover Your Direction
Clarity about where you’re headed makes the next step obvious.

Start Here Journal & Facebook Group

To help you walk this out, we’ve created a Start Here Journal and a Facebook group to help you stay focused and accountable this year.

Today, I’m calling this message:

Stuck Again?: How to See and Move Toward Your Future

Every January starts with hope.

New year.
New goals.
New energy.

And for a lot of us, it also starts with a quiet thought we don’t say out loud.

Here we go again.

New calendar. Same patterns.
New intentions. Same struggles.

If that’s you, hear this clearly.

You are not lazy.
You are not broken.
You are not behind.

But you might be stuck.

And the question isn’t, “How do I fix everything?”
The better question is, “Where do I actually start?”

January exposes something about all of us.

We want change, but we struggle to sustain it.

Stuck Again Statistics
Most New Year’s resolutions fall into a few categories:

(https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/01/29/new-years-resolutions-who-makes-them-and-why/)
(https://news.lifeway.com/2021/12/28/new-years-resolutions-focus-on-health-god-and-money/)

(https://www.bcm.edu/news/new-years-resolutions-why-do-we-give-up-on-them-so-quickly)

(https://www.thereisadayforthat.com/holidays/various/quitters-day
https://reclaim.ai/blog/quitters-day)

Resolutions are not bad.

But most resolutions sound like this:
Try harder. Push more. Do better.

Trying harder doesn’t give you direction.

A resolution without a plan is just a wish.

You don’t just need effort.
You need direction.
And you need a way to take steps toward that direction.

You don’t just need effort.
You need direction.
And you need a way to take steps toward that direction.

That’s the difference between resolutions and vision.

Here is what Jesus says about how to build your life.

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
Matthew 7:24 NIV

“But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”
Matthew 7:26 NIV

Jesus describes two people.

They heard the same words.
They had the same information.

You could even say it this way:

They both had the same New Year’s resolution.

But only one of them acted on it.

The difference wasn’t desire.
The difference wasn’t knowledge.

The difference was whether the words shaped how they lived.

Wisdom, according to Jesus, is not just hearing His words.
Wisdom is putting His words into practice.

Wisdom, according to Jesus, is not just hearing His words.
Wisdom is putting His words into practice.

And we see this play out in real life with Peter.

In Luke 5, Peter has been fishing all night.
Same lake. Same nets. Same effort.

Nothing to show for it.

Empty nets.

Jesus tells him to go back out and let down the nets again.
Peter obeys, and there’s a miraculous catch.

Jesus blesses what Peter was already doing.

Jesus wants to bless what you are already trying to do in life. (unless it is sin)

But He doesn’t stop there.

He may bless what you’re doing now,
and still invite you into something new.

He says this to Peter:

“From now on you will fish for people.”
Luke 5:10 NIV

Jesus doesn’t just bless Peter’s effort.
He gives Peter a new direction.

Peter’s life doesn’t change because he caught more fish.
It changes because Jesus spoke a new future over him.

You want more money, promotion, better health, a house, smoother family vibes… You are working HARD for this… but Jesus has even better.

This is how Jesus leads.

He doesn’t just say, “Try harder.”
He says, “Follow me.” “Trust me.” (Mattew 4:19)

Jesus does not come with a binder filled with rules and regulations.
Jesus comes with an invitation and direction.

This is where vision becomes practical.

Not everything.
Not all at once.
Just a place to begin.

1. Clarify your direction

Before habits, before plans, ask this:

What do I want God to build in me this year?

Your faith.
Your family.
Your health.
Your finances.
Your relationships.

Not all of them.
One or two that matter most.

Direction comes before discipline.

2. Connect simple, repeatable actions to that direction

A goal without a plan is a wish.
A goal with a plan becomes vision.

This doesn’t mean complex.
It doesn’t mean heavy.
It doesn’t mean all-encompassing.

It means simple, repeatable actions you can actually live with.

Small steps aimed in the right direction.

3. Shift from “try harder” to “trust Jesus”

Resolutions say, try harder.
Jesus says, trust me.

This has been my prayer this week:

Jesus, I’m going to give You my effort.
I’ll show up.
I’ll take the steps I can take.
But I’m going to trust You with the outcome.

I can control my effort.
I can’t control the results.
But I can trust the One who leads me.

musicians

Now zoom out for a moment.

This isn’t just about what you do.
This is about who we are becoming together.

We are choosing depth over hype.
Direction over drift.
Practice over intention.

This year, we are becoming a people who:

We’re not trying to do everything.
We’re trying to do the right things, faithfully.

And we’re doing it together.

Here’s how we’re responding as a church family.

#1: Decide your direction.

#2: Take small, repeatable steps.

#3: Make a commitment.

#4: Trust Jesus with the outcome.

Pray, Worship and place this year in His hands.

You don’t have to have it all figured out.
You just have to start here.

Explore the full Start Here series on the Start Here Hub

Download the Start Here Journal

Join the Start Here Facebook Group