THE YEAR OF STEP UP.

TITLE: THE YEAR OF STEP UP

Series: New Year 2026 Vision

Bible Verses: Isaiah 43:18-19; Philippians 3:13-14, Joshua 1:9

Isaiah 43:18-19 (AMP)

18 “Do not call to mind the former things, Or ponder things of the past. 19 “Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not perceive and know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness And rivers in the desert.”

Philippians 3:13-14 (AMP)

13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have made it my own yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the [heavenly] prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Joshua 1:9 (AMP)

9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

NEWLIFE4YOU New Year Service

INTRODUCTION: THE INVITATION TO ELEVATION

Welcome to 2026.

There is something powerful about the turning of a calendar page. It is a psychological reset button. It is a moment where the entire world collectively agrees that the past is done and the future is open. But I want to challenge you this morning—or whenever you are hearing this message—that a “New Year” does not automatically mean a “New You.” Time changes automatically; people change intentionally.

We often enter a new year with the mindset of moving forward. We think of life as a timeline, moving from left to right, from yesterday to tomorrow. But I believe God is calling us to a different dimension this year. He isn’t just calling us to move forward horizontally; He is calling us to move upward vertically.

I want to declare over your life, over your family, and over this community: 2026 is The Year of Step Up.

What does it mean to “Step Up”? It implies that where you have been living is too low for where you are going. It implies that the ground you are standing on has served its purpose, but it cannot support your future. It implies effort. Gravity pulls us down; comfort keeps us level. Only purpose can make us climb.

You have walked on the flat ground long enough. You have navigated the plains of “average” long enough. The air is different up higher. The view is different up higher. And yes, the climb is harder—but the reward is greater.

Today, I want to unpack three specific areas where we must Step Up this year:

We must Step Up out of our History.
We must Step Up our Expectation.
We must Step Up to Responsibility.
We must Step Up with Courage

Let’s go to the Word.

PART ONE: STEP UP OUT OF YOUR HISTORY

If you have your Bibles, Please turn with me to the book of Isaiah, chapter 43, verses 18 and 19. The prophet Isaiah is speaking to a people who are stuck in exile, people who are obsessed with the way things used to be. And God interrupts their memory with a command:

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:18-19

To Step Up, you first have to Let Go.

Imagine you are trying to climb a steep mountain. You have your hiking boots, your water, and your map. But imagine you are also dragging a heavy suitcase behind you. In that suitcase are all your failures from 2025. The arguments you shouldn’t have had. The money you lost. The project that failed. The sin you committed.

You take one step up, and the weight of that suitcase pulls you two steps back. You cannot climb a mountain while looking over your shoulder.

The Trap of the Rear-View Mirror

Why do we love the past so much? Because the past is known. Even a painful past is comfortable because it is familiar. The future is unknown, and the unknown is scary. So we cling to our history.

But hear me clearly: You cannot be a victim of your history and a master of your destiny at the same time.

Some of you are entering 2026, but your mind is still living in 2025. You are replaying old conversations. You are nursing old wounds. You are holding onto grudges like they are trophies.

To the Church: Unforgiveness is a heavy chain. It doesn’t hurt the person you are mad at; it tethers you to the ground. If you want to Step Up this year, you must forgive. Not because they deserve it, but because you deserve to travel light.
To the Public: Failure is not a destination; it is a lesson. Did you fail in 2025? Good. That means you tried. But don’t build a house in your failure. Learn from it, pack up the lesson, and leave the pain behind.

The Trap of the Glory Days

“Stepping Out of History” isn’t just about forgetting bad things. Sometimes, the enemy of your future is your past success. Some of us are stuck in the “Good Old Days.” We talk about how great things used to be five years ago. If you are still talking about what you did in 2020, you aren’t doing enough in 2026. God says, “Forget the former things.” Why? Because if your hands are full of yesterday’s trophies, you cannot catch the new blessings He is throwing your way today.

Action Point: I want you to take a mental inventory right now. What is the one thing—the one memory, the one regret, the one “glory story”—that is keeping you stuck? Visualise yourself standing at the bottom of a staircase. Visualise yourself setting that heavy bag down. Leave it there. Step Up.

PART TWO: STEP UP YOUR EXPECTATION

Once we leave the past, we have to look at the present. Look at the second part of that verse in Isaiah: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”

God asks a question: “Do you not perceive it?” This implies that God can be doing something amazing right in front of your face, but if you don’t have the right mindset, you will miss it completely.

This year, we must Step Up our Expectation.

The Thermostat vs. The Thermometer

Most people live their lives like a thermometer. A thermometer just reflects the environment. If the room is cold, the thermometer goes down. If the economy is bad, their mood goes down. If people are rude, they get angry. They are victims of the atmosphere.

But you are called to be a thermostat. A thermostat doesn’t measure the temperature; it sets the temperature. When a thermostat steps up, the whole room changes to match it.

In 2026, stop waiting for your circumstances to get better before you get happy. Stop waiting for your bank account to grow before you feel generous. Step Up your expectation.

Expect favor.
Expect open doors.
Expect that when you walk into a room, the atmosphere shifts because you are there.

Faith is Expectation

In Hebrews 11, the Bible defines faith as “the substance of things hoped for.” Faith isn’t just a religious word; it is a mechanism of expectation. If you go to a restaurant and order a steak, you sit at the table with a fork and knife. You haven’t seen the steak yet. You haven’t smelled it yet. But you have prepared for it. You have an expectation.

Many of us are praying for rain, but we aren’t carrying an umbrella. We are praying for a “Year of Step Up,” but we are still planning for a year of staying the same.

To the Church: If you believe God is going to move in your family, start setting the table for dinner. Start acting like the answer is on the way.
To the Public: In psychology, this is called the “Reticular Activating System.” Your brain finds what it focuses on. If you focus on problems, you will find problems. If you focus on opportunity, you will find opportunity. Step Up your focus!

The Challenge: I challenge you to stop saying, “I hope I survive this year.” Start saying, “I expect to thrive this year.” I expect to grow. I expect to meet the right people. I expect to have the wisdom to handle challenges. When you Step Up your expectation, you give God room to work.

PART THREE: STEP UP TO RESPONSIBILITY

We have dealt with the Past (Letting Go). We have dealt with the Mindset (Expectation). Now, we must deal with the Action.

Turn to Philippians 3:14. The Apostle Paul says:

“I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

Circle that word “Press.” He doesn’t say, “I float toward the goal.” He doesn’t say, “I dream about the goal.” He says, I PRESS.

This brings us to the hardest part of the message: Step Up to Responsibility.

The Stairs vs. The Elevator

We live in an “elevator generation.” We want the quick fix. We want the “Get Rich Quick” scheme. We want the “Lose Weight in 3 Days” pill. We want the revival without the prayer. We want the promotion without the overtime.

But in the Kingdom of God—and in the laws of success—there is no elevator to the top. You have to take the stairs. And the stairs are made of responsibility.

To “Step Up” means you stop looking around for someone else to fix your life.

“If only the government would change…”
“If only my boss was nicer…”
“If only my spouse understood me…”

Stop it. The moment you blame someone else, you give them the power. The moment you take responsibility, you take the power back.

What Does Responsibility Look Like in 2026?

Step Up in Your Discipline: You want to write a book? Stop watching 3 hours of TV a night. You want to get healthy? Stop buying the junk food. The “Step Up” happens in the daily, boring, unseen habits.
Step Up in Your Service: (Specific to NEWLIFE4YOU context) Some of you have been sitting in the pews (or watching online) for years. You are a consumer. But maturity is moving from being a consumer to a creator. Don’t just come to church; be the church. Don’t just read the devotional; share it with someone who is hurting. When you see a piece of trash on the floor, pick it up. When you see a gap in the ministry, step into it. Leaders don’t complain about problems; leaders solve problems.
Step Up in Your Integrity: In a world of fake news and filters, be real. Keep your word. If you say you’ll be there at 9:00, be there at 8:55. Excellence is a form of worship. Let’s make 2026 the year where our character catches up to our gifting.
PART FOUR: STEP UP WITH COURAGE

Now, I know what some of you are thinking. You are thinking: “Pastor, I want to leave the past behind. I want to have high expectations. I want to take responsibility. But honestly? I am scared.”

And that brings us to the final, crucial ingredient for this year. You cannot Step Up if you are paralyzed by fear. We must Step Up with Courage.

Please Turn with me to Joshua 1:9. Context matters here. Joshua is standing on the edge of the Promised Land. He is about to step up into the role of a lifetime. The task ahead is giant. The enemies are real. The pressure is immense.

And God speaks to him:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

The Higher You Go, The Scarier It Gets

Let’s be real about “Stepping Up.” When you stay on the ground floor, you are safe. No one falls from the floor. But the moment you start climbing the ladder of your destiny, the wind blows a little harder. The ladder shakes a little bit. You look down, and you realize how far you have to fall.

Fear is the tax you pay for growth. If your dreams for 2026 don’t scare you a little bit, they are too small. If your goals for this year don’t require you to pray for help, you aren’t stepping up—you’re just walking sideways.

It Is a Command, not a Suggestion

Notice the language God uses with Joshua. He asks, “Have I not commanded you?” He doesn’t say, “Joshua, if you feel like it, try to be brave.” He commands it.

Why? because God knows that fear is a spirit that tries to abort your destiny.

To the Public: Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is feeling the fear and doing it anyway. The brave person and the coward both feel the same fear; the only difference is how they respond to it.
To the Church: God commands courage because He has already provided the backup. He says, “Do not be discouraged.” Why? “For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

The Safety Net

This is the secret to the Step Up. You aren’t climbing alone. God has promised that His presence is attached to your progress.

Some of you are afraid to apply for that new job. Step Up. Some of you are afraid to start that ministry. Step Up. Some of you are afraid to open your heart again after a heartbreak. Step Up.

God is saying to you in 2026: “You take the step; I’ll handle the rest.” He is the safety net. You can afford to be bold because God is faithful.

PART FIVE: STEP UP CONSISTENTLY

“Finally, I need you to understand one thing about elevation: You cannot teleport to the top.

We live in a culture that celebrates the ‘big leap.’ We love the viral moment, the lottery win, the sudden breakthrough. But in the Kingdom of God, and in the real world, elevation is rarely a jump; it is a climb. Courage gets you to the stairs, but consistency gets you to the top.

We often overestimate what we can do in a single day and underestimate what we can do in a year. You might start January 1st with a burst of energy—running 10 kilometres, reading 50 chapters, changing your whole diet. But by January 15th, you are exhausted. That is not Stepping Up; that is burning out.

The Apostle Paul gives us the secret to winning the long game in Galatians 6:9:

“Let us not grow weary or become discouraged in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap, if we do not give in.”

To the Public:Consistency beats intensity every time. You can’t brush your teeth for one hour on Sunday and expect them to be clean all week. You have to do it twice a day, every day. Whether it is your fitness, your savings, or your career, success is simply the compound interest of small, boring actions repeated over time.
To the Church:We love the mountaintop experiences—the big conferences and the loud worship. But spiritual maturity grows in the quiet. It grows when you keep serving even when no one thanks you. It grows when you keep praying even when you don’t see the answer yet. Faithfulness is the currency of Heaven.

The ‘Year of Step Up’ isn’t about a massive, overnight transformation. It is about the power of the small step repeated daily. It’s about the ordinary Tuesdays in February when you don’t feel like stepping up. That is when the real victory is won.

Don’t despise the small steps.

Reading one verse a day is better than planning to read a whole book and reading nothing.
Saving 100 dollars a week is better than planning to save a million and saving nothing.
Forgiving one small offense is the practice ground for forgiving the big ones.

The step you take when no one is watching is the one that builds the muscle for the miracle.

And please listen to me: If you stumble—and you might—don’t let the enemy convince you that you have fallen all the way back to the bottom. You haven’t. You just slipped. Catch your breath. You haven’t. You just slipped. There is a huge difference between a stumble and a full stop. The enemy wants you to believe that one mistake disqualifies you from the journey, but God’s grace is specifically designed for the climb. When you slip, do not camp there. Do not build a monument to your mistake in the middle of the trail.

God is not looking for perfection this year; He is looking for direction. As long as your face is turned upward, you are still in the game. His hand is not there to push you down when you fail, but to pull you up so you can try again. So, catch your breath. Dust off your knees. Re-align your focus. Look up at the goal again. And just take one more step. That is how you climb a mountain. Not by running, but by refusing to quit. That is how you win the year.”

CONCLUSION: THE VIEW FROM HIGHER GROUND

Why do we do this? Why do we do the hard work of letting go of the past? Why do we fight to keep our expectations high? Why do we embrace the grind of responsibility? Why do we choose courage over comfort?

Because the view is worth it.

When you live on the ground level, every little obstacle looks like a giant wall. A flat tire ruins your week. A rude comment ruins your day. You are living in the maze. But when you Step Up, you gain altitude. From the top of the mountain, the things that used to scare you look so small. From the higher ground, you can see the path ahead. You can see where you are going.

God is calling you to Higher Ground. He is calling you out of the swamp of bitterness. He is calling you out of the fog of confusion. He is calling you to a place of vision, a place of peace, a place of power.

This isn’t just a catchy slogan. “The Year of Step Up” is a prophetic decree over your life. It is time to rise.

PRAYER & ALTAR CALL

I want you to please close your eyes. I want you to please visualize the year 2026 stretching out before you.

Maybe you feel tired. Maybe the stairs look steep. But hear the promise of Isaiah 40: 31 “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.”

Let us pray.

“Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of a new beginning. We thank You that You are the God of the Step Up. Right now, we make a decision. We release the baggage of 2025. We forgive. We let go. We lift our eyes to You. We Step Up our expectation. We believe that You have good plans for us. And Lord, give us the strength to take responsibility. Give us the Courage of Joshua. When our legs get tired, remind us that You are with us wherever we go. We declare that 2026 will not be a year of stagnation. It will be a year of elevation. In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.”

Go in peace. Keep climbing. Step Up. Happy New Year. God bless abundantly.