Embarking On a New Year

The new year is always a wonderful time to recall the passing year and remember the ways that God has been working in my life.   It’s a time to take inventory of what the Lord has been teaching me and consider ways that I have grown through the last year.  It’s also a time to look ahead toward another year of life and reestablish or create resolutions and refocus on life. 

God taught me a lot of different lessons throughout the past year.  There were many lessons about trusting the Lord, contentment, faithfulness and responsiblity, and loving others.   There were trials and tears that we faced with our church family and joy in the Lord as He worked in all of our lives.  There were new friendships formed.  There were exciting changes in my life as I finished highschool and started in on some new adventures.   Through it all, God showed us all once again, how very, very faithful He is!

The new year started out very differently than I had imagined that it would, with the death of my grandmother.  Certainly, however, this has caused us to refocus this year on how we are living our lives.  While God controls everything, we have no certainty of life and what a reminder this was of how quickly life can change.  I want to keep this in view throughout 2012–I want to remember that every breath I take, every day I life is a gift from the Lord.  I want to use these gifts wisely and in a way that brings honor to His name.

As far as Scripture resolutions, this is what I have:

**Begin every day with morning prayer (Psalm 5:3–In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; in the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.)

**Pray daily for the spread of the gospel throughout the world and the persecuted church (Matthew 6:10–Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven; Hebrews 13:3–Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourself also are in the body.)

**Encourage another believer daily (Hebrews 3:13–But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.)

**Journal regularly (1Chronicles 16:12–Remember His wonderful deeds which He has done, His marvels and the judgments from His mouth.)

I want my main focus of the year to be on the Word of God and prayer.  The vastness of the Bible is amazing and I want to spend a lot of time reading and studying it.  Also, the example of Christ’s prayer life is very challenging to me–much diligence needs to be applied to the area of prayer.

“Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.”  But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
–Luke 10:38-42

One thing is necessary.  One thing.  Let’s focus one that one thing. 

In the morning when I rise,
Give me Jesus
When I am alone,
Give me Jesus
And when I come to die,
Give me Jesus

You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus.

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