A new year and a new decade are here! And, oh how God is working in my life already! I have started the year more organized than ever, we see how long that lasts, but really, it has too if I want to accomplish all the things this year.
I am in the midst of writing a sermon on fear, a class on Holy Spirit, some stories to send out to publishers, working on the blog and doing a couple of bible studies. One for my own personal growth and another to share with women on Facebook. Web pages and social media play such a large role in this writing business, and I am trying to get a handle on all that entails as well.
Gifts with Grace, a young ministry you will hear more about soon, is taking off so much faster than any of us thought and it’s so exciting to be working with such an amazing, gifted group of women. It is taking up a fair amount of time as well. I can’t wait to share more in upcoming weeks.
I tell you all of this, not to impress you, because none of this is me. But to share what God can do if I just get out of the way and let Him. He is filling me up with joy in all of these projects. He is molding me to be the woman He created. He is showing me ways to find time I didn’t think I had. He is gently but firmly keeping me humble. As He gives me ideas He also gives me the plans to go with them. Holy Spirit is giving me just what I need when I need it.
God has taken my messy heart and in the wonder of Him, brought it into a beautiful harmony that allows me to do His kingdom work His way.
This is such an incredible way to start the new year. And yet, I know the odds are good I will lose this feeling. That I will fall back into my ways of squandering rather than accomplishing in the hours I am given each day. It very well could happen that I will lose sight of the importance of my private time with God for things I deem more important in that moment.
How do I keep this from happening? I know that there are forces working against what Holy Spirit has been teaching me the last few weeks. I know that I am innately selfish and open to distractions that are not a part of His plan. I have been here before and fallen into the temptations of the world.
Why do I think it will be different this time? Honestly, I don’t know that it will be different. Here’s what I do know, I am 57 and have so much I want to accomplish. I have spent far too many years living on the thresholds of my dreams. Some dreams God put in my heart when I was 12, and others just last year.
I have been close to God before and ended up listening to the world and slowly walking away from the heart of God. I would love to tell you that I know it won’t happen again, but I can’t.
I can, however, try. I can ask for your prayers to keep my heart growing closer to God. I can commit to spending that time with Him every morning, making it a priority before I start my day. That time includes, prayers, reading His word and listening to Him. I can seek Him throughout my day; petitioning, listening and yes, asking for forgiveness. It is my hope that it will continue, and I know that this particular hope depends on me and my commitment to Him.
Friends, can I just tell you that these past few weeks have brought me a love for God and for His Word that I have never known before? I have been overwhelmed with the scope of what is on my plate, but He, in His glorious mercy, met me where I was and has given me what I need to get through each day encouraged. One day at a time.
I don’t know what tomorrow will bring. I know my Savior loves me. I know that no one, including myself, is rooting for me to be successful in His kingdom work more than God is. So I intend to go about this story one day at a time. Loving Him, meeting with Him and doing the things He asks of me. I commit to asking every day, “How can I serve you today?”
What about you? Wherever you are trying to grow, He is with you. He loves you! And no one wants you to be successful more than God!
