Have you noticed the media buzz around the notion of reducing New Year’s Resolutions down to a one theme word? This word replaces that long, often forgotten and hard-to-keep list of resolutions and is intended to envelop all your aspirations for a new year.
Some of the favorites across our country have been: Simplify, Intentional, Strengthen, Commit, Adventure, Live, Forgive, Grace, Apply.
Well, I hate to open the brand new year with a confession, but here it goes…..
I missed the bandwagon and never came up with a New Year’s theme!
But Seriously?
A one-word theme?
For the whole year?
What a daunting task! I bear a humbling resemblance to the Downton Abbey character whose motto is, “Why say in three words what you could say in thirty?” How does one plagued with too many words, narrow her year’s theme down to one? If I’m down-right honest, I’m simply not bright enough to become convinced I had picked the right word.
So I put it off…
……until yesterday!
During some of the relaxing post-Christmas moments I’ve grown to cherish, the following verses from the Bible seemed to jump off the pages and into my spirit. They began to strum an enticing melody in my soul as I ventured back to revisit them several times over the past few days. I pondered the possibility of Holy Spirit’s help in selecting a theme for my coming year.
Here were the passages that gripped me:
- Paul’s words to the church in Corinth challenged my commitment: 15 I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you… Everything we do, dear friends, is to strengthen you.( 2 Cor 12:15a, 19b)
- A prophecy in Isaiah challenged my motives: Our hearts desire is to glorify your name. (Isaiah 26:8b)
- The Lord’s inquiry challenged my activity: Does the farmer always plow and never sow? Is he forever cultivating the soil and never planting? The farmer knows just what to do for God has given him understanding. The Lord is a wonderful teacher, and he gives the farmer great wisdom. (Isaiah 28:24,26,29)
Each time I read these verses, the questions lessened and longing in my soul increased. O.K. Father, here it is: I desperately want to spend more of myself for others! I long to quit plowing and start planting that Your name might be glorified!
Could I trust the One who gives perfect understanding to teach me how and when to sow good seeds of Truth, kindness, availability, hope, encouragement, compassion, grace, and forgiveness?
What unseen joy is available to anyone who would spend herself for the lives of others by planting seeds….
- Into fertile soil: that someone might celebrate a harvest of maturity, of joy, of faithfulness
- Into weary soil: that someone might finally take a deep breath of peace and trust
- Into cracked and broken soil: that someone might know restoration and healing
- Into exposed and unguarded soil: that someone might grow lush boundaries of protection to secure her valued soul
- In weakening soil: that someone might discover Jesus to be a trustworthy and unshakable Rock on which to build her life.
I’m still not sure I can reduce my thoughts into a one word theme, but I’ve finally narrowed it down to two:
Spend & Plant
I choose to spend more of myself and all that I have that I might plant seeds to strengthen others.
Now that you’ve heard my theme, let’s hear yours!
Beauty Awaits…
Patty
I guess if I had to sum up my year and others to come with one word it would be “prayer”.
That’s powerful, Sarah! May Jesus simply draw you into an ongoing conversation with Himself! You are dearly loved!
This is beautiful. I love how you are able to get into words exactly what I need to hear. I, too, would like to be the kind of woman who pours out what God gives. I am truly a blessed woman. I do, however, need more and more of God. I confess I am a bit like the person Pastor Mike was describing in church on Sunday. While I don’t see myself and poor I “want” just a little more. 🙂 I don’t see myself as fat but I do think, I should lose “just a little more”. If I truly focused on all God is to and for me I would need nothing else. And that is a fact. I need only more of HIM. So the focus this year is “I need you LORD, more and more.” Awareness of You, Focus on You, Dependance on You, Trust in You, Pressing in more to You, Knowing You. Thank you Patty for how you spend and plant. You already do that and because of that there are many who are following the example. Thank you for your heart, your love of God and how you share with others. Blessings to you and your precious family in 2015.
I love it when the nation (or world) catches up with me (grin). Back in the early to mid-90’s I decided that I needed to pick a theme for the new year and a Bible verse to go with it. Sometimes it is a one word theme (such as in 2008 when “Pilgrimage” was my word and Psalm 84:5 (NIV) was my verse. In 2011 it was “Pursue Holiness” and my verse was 1 Peter 1:15 ). I knew in November that my 2015 theme was “Experience God’s Presence” (or simply Presence) and I’ve accumulate six books on that topic that I plan to read in 2015. I have found over the years that I love, love, love having an annual theme to focus on.
Thanks for your post, and I like your theme for 2015.
Judy, It’s about time the culture catches up to you! I love your idea of considering a topic early (I’ll try that next year) and then selecting books that assist in growing intentionally under the umbrella of that theme. Thank you for once again allowing the overflow of your rich life to refresh me with new insights and inspiration!
For several years, I chose one word or phrase as my Spiritual goal for that year. I was amazed how powerfully that ended up defining my year. I put this practice aside…until last year when I felt it was something the Lord wanted me to do once more. Then, I read something somewhere (I read a LOT) that said research showed that when people choose just one word to define their upcoming year, they were much more likely to be impacted by that one word than a whole list of resolutions. It took me until almost February last year before I knew in the depths of my heart that my word for the year needed to be Perseverance. Only in the past week–after a lot of thinking and asking–have I captured this year’s word–Discovery. It’s kind of a strange word to me, but I’m excited to encounter whatever it is the Lord wants me to Discover. Enjoy these exciting next few days, Grandma Patty!
Discovery! I love it Sue! May you discover Jesus daily in brand new ways…and may your soul be attentive to the countless new discoveries that make their way to you as you simply pay keen attention!
Hi Patty, thank you for your encouraging words it has been a blessing to my life. Nancy 🙂
Nancy, Thank you for taking the time to affirm my life! That means so much to me! Many blessings, Patty