"Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share in your Master's happiness" (Matthew 25:23).
How did you do with your 2011 resolutions and goals? Did your enthusiasm carry you to a glorious celebration in December, or did you crash and burn by February after the exuberance died down? Mine was a mix of starts, stumbles and do overs. This was a hard year, the roughest I've had in awhile. Some resolutions were not kept except for one, the one that enabled me to finish stronger in December than I started in January.
A year ago I asked God to help me make His voice; His Word the first priority of my day. Instead of rushing out of bed and turning on the television to digest the local news, I met with Jesus quietly in an over-sized chair as I read my devotional and Bible. As I knelt and prayed before walking downstairs to begin my myriad of tasks, I asked the Holy Spirit to disciple and still my soul. Crowding out the demands of the world for precious time with my Savior gave me strength and courage for the day.
It's easy to say that God is good when life is smooth, but hard to remember God is faithful when testing comes. So I started to record my prayer requests and the Scriptures God revealed to me along the way. Some days He gave me a verse or two early in the morning. Other days it came from a friend, my husband, or our pastor's Sunday morning message. I wrote the verses in a journal and reviewed them on New Years Eve. What a blessing to see how much the Lord delivered me from and carried me through!
Like you, many of my prayer requests are still on going needs. Some have not been answered yet. But I am sticking with my 2011 resolution and taking it into 2012--making God's voice and His Word the first thing I hear each day. It's exciting to see Him change me and to watch my marriage grow. With each passing day I am increasingly thankful for God's mercy and grace that enables me to finish well.
As God's girl I know I am here for a bigger purpose than to see all of my goals and resolutions fulfilled. God wants to use me if only I will get out of the way and let Him work. How I want this to be my reality--a little light for Jesus in a dark and troubled world. Do you feel the same about your life? Let us pray for each other to take hold of all the power God provides. Remember, starting well is only great if you finish well! Here's to a fabulous 2012 in our service to our Almighty God and Father. Happy New Year! "Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share in your Master's happiness" (Matthew 25:23).
Your fellow sojourner and herald,
Mary
thank you Mary. happy new year hun.
ReplyDeletei agree that was the biggest thing for me in 2011 too - His Word.
this year i plan to get even more laser focused on it and be better determined to daily go there FIRST xxx