Intentional: my word of the year for 2026

 

January is past -- and now February is also. It's more than time for me to write this word of the year post.  I've been struggling to pull my thoughts into coherent form, but I need to stop putting it off and just write and see where it goes.  

I can start, obviously, with a simple dictionary definition of my word for the year:

So that is pretty straightforward.  Done on purpose; deliberate.

 

I want all that I do to be done on purpose. The first time I ever chose a word for the year was in 2013, and I chose the word purpose.  In that 2013 post, I noted that I chose that word because I want to live my life on purpose, and I want to be daily living out God's purposes for my life.

 

And I am still committed to that.  I want to live my life on purpose, and I want all that I do each day to be moving me toward one or more of God's purposes for my life.

 

I'll mention those purposes again for those who may not have seen them.  (Some of these very same purposes may well be yours also!)

 

GOD'S PURPOSES FOR MY LIFE
 

Overarching purpose:  To bring honor and glory to God with my life (using the spiritual gifts and the talents He has equipped me with) as I seek to:
 

1) Be a godly wife [includes being a good homemaker], mother, and grandmother.
 

2) Use my teaching gifts (and other spiritual gifts -- giving , helps, hospitality, serving) for God's glory -- to encourage fellow believers and help them grow, and to reach out to those who don't yet know Him.
 

3)  Use my writing talents (and other talents -- crafts, cooking, home decorating, etc.) for God's glory -- again, to encourage the family of God and to be a testimony and an outreach to those who don't yet know Him.

 

As I read through these again,  they helped to clarify my thinking as to what I will be intentional about.  

 

The first one, the overarching purpose, is the same, actually, for every believer.  But the specifics will look different for many of us. 

1) I'm a wife, a mother of three adult children, and a grandmother of fourteen.  I'm an aunt, a niece, and a cousin.  My primary human responsibility is, of course, my husband, and I need to be much more intentional in my care of him and just nurturing our relationship in general.  It's easy after over 50 years to take some things for granted and not be as intentional.  One thing I am seeking to work on is being a better friend to him.  

As a mom, I always want to be intentional in praying for my kids and their spouses.  To that end, I have a list that I am praying for each of them.  And I seek to always be purposeful in not offering advice (unless it is asked for).  Oh, I might suggest a home remedy or two, but not advice on life or spiritual things unless they ask.  I also seek to be a help to my local daughter with things like cooking or cleaning if she has a particularly busy week.

I do pray for each of my grandchildren every day.  Some years ago I wrote this prayer for my grandchildren which expresses well the intentionality with which I pray for them, but I do pray for individual needs as well.  Salvation for some; spiritual and character growth; mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health for all.  I pray about their decision-making, their schoolwork, their future spouses, their jobs, and much, much more.  I also seek to encourage them in person and sometimes by email.  Because I have an Etsy shop, I've been able to advise my local granddaughter who sells on Etsy about a few questions she has had.  Quite a few years ago I wrote a monthly, or semi-monthly, newsletter I called the Grammy Gazette, to keep the grandkids up to date with happenings in our lives.  At least one grandson is wishing I would revive that, and I just might!

2) God has given me spiritual gifts that I can use to glorify Him.  Isn't that astounding?  So I need to be purposeful about using those gifts, and I seek to do just that.  There are opportunities to use every one of my gifts at church, but also in daily life.  Bringing someone a meal is just as much hospitality as opening one's home, for example.  If we know our spiritual gifts, we must be developing them and using them.  Helps is a spiritual gift I can also use in my volunteer job.  I use my teaching gifts in Sunday School and occasionally in other contexts, as well as here on my blog for Sunday Scripture posts.

3) And then whatever skills and talents I possess -- those also are to be used to glorify God.  I like to cook, decorate, and I like to be creative.  I have some writing skills.  I have years of experience in cleaning, which I've been able to put to use at my volunteer job and in helping to clean our church building on a regular basis.  I can also blog about all of these things and encourage others in that way as well.

Using my gifts, talents and skills intentionally is an ongoing goal in my days, weeks, and months.  But I am seeking to become much more intentional in my use of time.  As I age, I'm becoming increasingly aware of just how limited my remaining time on this earth might be, and am purposing to use every bit of time to the glory of God.

In this article in The Epoch Times, Walker Larson notes that "Time is our most valuable resource because it’s the most limited. Once lost, it’s lost forever." He adds that time is the "resource by which we acquire all other resources, which makes it the most powerful one of all. Without time, we can’t experience or enjoy anything else in life. Time is the very medium of life itself."  And that's such a sobering thought!  Larson noted that he once heard this saying: "Our priorities are what we do.  Everything else is just talk." And he commented, "We show what we really care about by what we spend our most precious resources on."

Elizabeth George says something similar: "We dare not waste our most precious resource: our lives."

My use of the book Fix Your Focus over the past 40-plus weeks has really helped me to use my time much more intentionally.  I shared also about a planning tool -- a weekly calendar schedule that I've been using along with Fix Your Focus to make a real difference in my weeks.

I'm also seeking to be more intentional in my interactions with people -- to make it a goal that they will be encouraged in some way or somehow pointed to God through time together, however brief it may be.  

And those are just a few ways in which I'm seeking to live out my word of the year.  We will see how I do over the next ten months.

From the January archives

 I guess that I have never done an archive post for January.  I can't find it, if so.  So it's high time that I put one together!  It's also an easy sort of post to buy me a little time while formulating my New Year goals.   Pour yourself a cup of coffee or tea (isn't this snowflake coffee pot beautiful?)  and enjoy the read.

I'll start by sharing Cranberry Orange Muffins, from January 2007.  As I mentioned in the post, this muffin recipe includes cornmeal and I really like the texture.

From 2008, When the Path is Steep is a devotional thought that might encourage anyone facing what looks like a hard season.

January 2009 had so many posts to help with spiritual growth.  I will share just two: Reading Through the Bible in a Year or more, and Enriching one's life by use of a Prayer Journal.  I think I need to update that Bible reading post (or write a new one) since I've discovered other great ways of reading through the Bible in the interim.  If you are interested in the others -- there are more posts about my prayer journal and quiet time -- just go to the archives for January 2009.

In 2011 I did a number of embroidered designs, mostly pillow cases and dish towels.  You can read about them here: Bluebird and Sparrow designs.  And Hearty fare for a cold night features Rosemary Chicken with White Beans.  

Vintage Style Pillowcases, from 2012, is a pattern I have made often.  So customizable!

A post about three cross-stitched Christmas ornaments might give you some ideas for the coming year's Christmas crafting.  From 2015.  Further crafting from that same January included a flannel baby blanket which has become my go-to baby gift.  New moms love the convenient size of these blankets to place over baby in the car, or to use as a handy nursing cover.

From 2016, I share some ideas for Winter Centerpieces.

This post could become quite unwieldy, as I have nine more years of archives to look through.  So I will end with this and plan to do a second archive post later in the month.

Sunday Scripture

 

 As I explained a couple of weeks ago, I'm shifting gears on my Sunday Scripture posts ... stepping away from the study of Psalms for awhile.  This is something God has placed on my heart to do, and I anticipate it being helpful to many of you, as well as to me.

I am using the Daily Grace Co. book Fix Your Focus, which is really not a Bible study as such, but more of a guide to help you fix your focus on God, His Word, prayer, gratitude, and spiritual growth, every week for 52 weeks. If you can, by all means get your own copy of this beautiful, helpful book,  But even if you can't do that,  I encourage you to follow along with us as we journal, look at Scripture, pray, and face the challenges of our weeks with our focus on Him.

This week's lesson was actually done by me the week of March 3, but I will be working ahead of you readers.  So here goes!

🌿 The first prompt is JOURNAL.  We are encouraged to take a few minutes to journal about our fears, joys, worries, desires and stressors concerning the week ahead.  [If you are following along with us, take a moment in a journal or notebook to do just that.]. Here's what I wrote:

"The week ahead looks busy and a bit complicated.  There's a lot to juggle and to balance.  Yet by God's grace and with His help, I know it can be done.  

"From Thursday-Sunday we'll be holding down the fort at our volunteer jobs while others are away.  [On Saturday morning, we plan to return home for a few hours for meetings.]

"Next week and the week after may hold more cooking and serving responsibilities for other volunteers, which means, if that holds true, I will need to spend time this week doing food prep and planning, and there are only three days in which to do that.

"I also have two younger friends to connect with this week -- ministry that I love, but timing is always tricky with busy young moms.

"We also need to clean the church before leaving town on Thursday, and do another church errand en route.  

"And hopefully we'll get back in time for a grandson's birthday supper on Sunday evening.  WOW!"

🌿 The second prompt is PRAYER. It was suggested that we use several prayer prompts to have a conversation with God about the week ahead.  [You can do the same.  Use the very same prompts for your own prayer.]

Lord, You are ...  a great and awesome God.  You have the wisdom I do not have for this week, and You see the big picture that I cannot see.  You are able to strengthen me for the week ahead and enable me to see every responsibility clearly and wisely.

Lord, I feel ... so inadequate for the week ahead of me. There is no way I can do any of this in my own very limited strength and wisdom.

Lord, help me with ... ordering my days this week.  I have a plan, but I pray that You will help me to hold it loosely and to always be sensitive to your plan.  I pray that You will give me strength for every responsibility this week and that You will structure my days as You see fit.

Lord, forgive me for ... every time I try to act in my own strength or wisdom.  Forgive me for times when I add things to my own plate or when I exhibit any hint of pride.  You know each struggle that I'm dealing with, and I thank You for how You will work, in Jesus' name, Amen.

* Here we were also to make a note of 4 to 5 people we are praying for.  I listed two young couples, a bereaved acquaintance, and an old friend with serious health issues.

🌿 The next section in this helpful guide is SCRIPTURE MEDITATION.  I chose to first meditate on this week's Scripture, Psalm 143:10, using the SOAP method, and then answered several suggested questions.   You can use your own preferred method to meditate on this verse, and answer the questions below for yourself.

S= "Teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God.  Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness."  (Psalm 143:10)

O= David here is asking God to teach him to do His will,  He can ask this because God is his God.  There is a a personal relationship with the God of the universe.

David acknowledges that God's Holy Spirit is good.  The ESV says "gracious" instead of "good".  David asks that God's good, gracious Spirit will lead him into "the land of uprightness."  I was not sure whether the "land of uprightness" referred to heaven, or simply to an upright Christian life lived to the glory of God.  It may be both!  This phrase in the ESV reads "level ground".

Cross-reference for "teach me" -- "Blessed art Thou, O LORD; teach me Thy statutes."  (Psalm 119:12)

Cross-references for "Spirit" -- "And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Sprit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD."  (Isaiah 11:2)

"Thou gavest them also Thy good Spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not Thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst.'  (Nehemiah 9:20)

Cross-reference for "lead me" -- "He restoreth my soul.  He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake."  (Psalm 23:3)

Cross-reference for "land of uprightness" -- "Teach me Thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies."  (Psalm 27:11)

A= Spurgeon said, "How childlike -- 'Teach me!'  How practical -- "Teach me to do!'  How undivided in obedience -- 'to do Thy will!'  To do all of it, let it be what it may.  This is the best form of instruction, for its source is God, its object is holiness, its spirit is that of hearty loyalty."

"For Thou art my God'. Who else can teach me as Thou canst?  Who else will care to do it but my God?  Thou hast given me Thyself, Thou wilt surely give me Thy teaching."

Concerning "land of uprightness", Matthew Henry wrote,  "into the communion of saints, the pleasant land of the upright; or into a settled course of holy living which will lead to heaven, that land of uprightness where holiness will be in perfection."

As part of my application for this verse, I did the assignments suggested in Fix Your Focus for each week's verse.

* Reflect on what this verse tells you about who God is.

He is my God -- a personal God.  He is able to teach me to do His will.  He is my Shepherd and Leader who will lead me on a level, plain path even through difficulties, along what our pastor of many year called "our pilgrimage from here to glory."  God is good and His Holy Spirit will lead and guide us.

* Think about what this verse tells you about who you are.  

I am God's child.  I am in need of teaching.  I must learn to do His will.  I cannot trust my own thinking to lead and teach me,  but must rely on His good and gracious Spirit to do this

* Throughout this week, consider how this verse should affect the way you live.

I should be teachable and humble, sensitive to the Spirit's leading.

P= "Lord, I thank and praise You that You made a way for me to have a relationship with You!  I am thankful that Your indwelling Spirit will teach me and give me direction.  I pray that You will help me to be teachable and sensitive to Your leading, and that You will make my path clear and plain as I look to You.  I thank and praise You for Your guidance and care, in Jesus' name, Amen."

🌿 The next prompt is for GRATITUDE.  We were encouraged to reflect on the ways God has shown His faithfulness to us over the last week, and then to list 5 things we are thankful for.  So, you who are reading along, do the same!

Here is my list:

1) Wisdom God has given and is giving for planning during this busy month of serving,

2) God orchestrating the events of the week so that I could have phone conversations with two young friends.

3) How God has helped me to stay consistent with my exercise program even while away from home.

4) His provision of sleep even when I have a lot on my mind.

5) The privilege of serving Him and the physical strength, health, and energy to do so.

🌿 SPIRITUAL GROWTH is the next thing to consider.  As I mentioned earlier, there are four different aspects of this that we will be rotating through.  The one for this week is SERVE.

For this prompt, we were asked to think about who we know that might be in need, and to consider how we could serve them with resources available to us -- things like time, finances, prayer, etc.  Jot down your own thoughts about this.  Here are mine:

* I used time and resources to prepare four casseroles to freeze for future ministry.

* We are using our time this weekend at our volunteer jobs so regular staff can be away.

* I was able to encourage both of my spiritual daughters by phone.

* I can use the resource of prayer to pray for many friends with needs this week.

🌿 WEEK-AT-A-GLANCE CHECKLIST is next.  It offers us four points.  

* To make a plan for reading our Bibles and praying.

* To add any upcoming events to our calendars.

* To jot down a to-do list of tasks that must be completed this week.

* To make a note of our top three priorities for this week.

Since I am working on Fix Your Focus all week long, I find it works best for me to do this week-at-a-glance checklist first.

Lastly is 🌿 a GOSPEL-CENTERED AFFIRMATION to take with us through the week.  This week it was: "The Lord is my God.  He teaches and leads me by His Spirit."

So there is our first Sunday Scripture using Fix Your Focus.  I know it's quite different from what we have been doing, but I trust the Lord will use it to encourage us!

Fixing my focus

 Recently I've sensed God prompting me to temporarily step away from the series on Psalms I've been working through for my Sunday Scripture posts.  I wanted to explain a little bit ahead of time about the direction I'm heading, so that others may join me in this challenge if they like.

I guess we could say that what got my thoughts started on this path was a discussion of New Year goals and encouragement back at our church ladies' January meeting.  The book Soul Care was mentioned, and how Jesus modeled these important rhythms during His earthly ministry: nourish, rest, connect, protect, savor, and tune in.  A copy of this book was given away at the meeting, and I happened to be the fortunate winner of it.  I began reading it and learned more about these rhythms.  (As with many books, I can't say I would necessarily agree with or recommend every single statement in the book, but I did find it helpful.  I recommend as always reading with discernment.)

The next step on the pathway was when a much younger woman asked me to help her grow spiritually and become more of a prayer warrior.  When I met with her the first time, I hadn't been 100% sure exactly what kind of encouragement she needed, so I had gathered up a few resources and then decided to add in a copy of Fix Your Focus, a Daily Grace Co. book I've had for awhile.

When I purchased this book I had thought it was more of a Bible study.  Since it wasn't exactly what I was looking for, I put it in my bookshelf and sort of forgot about it.  When I gathered up the resources to meet with my friend, I took a closer look.  Like all Daily Grace Co. publications, this book is gorgeous -- you can see that in the screenshots of it from their site.  It's a 52-week guide;  each week includes journaling, prayer,

 
a Scripture meditation (just one verse), gratitude, spiritual growth, a week-at-a-glance checklist, and a gospel-centered affirmation to chew on through the week.

Very interesting!  The "spiritual growth" component for each week includes some of the same rhythms modeled by Jesus.  No coincidence, I am sure.  These are things I need to pay closer attention to.

When I showed the book to my friend, she was very interested so I gave her my copy.

By now, though, I was realizing that my own focus could also use some fixing.  I felt led to get another  copy of the book so that we could each work through it on our own but discuss it together.

As I talked this over with my husband, an idea began to take form.  I'm realizing that no matter how badly I want to do all the Bible studies, I can only do so much in a day.  As we talked, I realized the Lord was inclining me away from my time-consuming study of Psalms for a season.  Surely, some of my readers would be interested in working through this 52-week guide with me.  Since I would be working through it anyway, it only made sense to blog about it and use that for my Sunday Scripture posts.

(I'll still be working on my personal study of Psalms and will write and schedule the posts for future Sunday Scripture posts in 2026.  I do have a Psalms post scheduled for this coming Sunday (March 9), but from March 16 and forward I'll be posting about Fix Your Focus.)

Focus, strangely enough, was my word for the year in 2023.  You can read about that here.

Yet I feel I need a reminder.  Perhaps some of you do, also.  If so, you might like to purchase your own copy of Fix Your Focus and work through it along with us.  I know that many aren't able to do that, but certainly you can follow along with our Sunday Scripture and glean some blessings and encouragement in doing so. 

I'm looking forward to this!

TRUST -- my word for 2025

Lovely graphic from Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

Yes, "trust" is my word for 2025.  It seems like such a basic word, such a foundational word, part of Christian Living 101.  Yet it's indisputably the word that God impressed upon me for this year.

I knew, well before the end of 2024, that "trust" should be my word.  It has taken me this long to pull together my thoughts about it.  So ... 

Partway through 2024 I began to notice something rather disconcerting about myself.  I'm not sure if it had to do with aging or something else, but I noticed that I seemingly wanted to avoid situations that could potentially cause me discomfort or difficulty.  (I'm sure that's fairly normal for most of us!)  But I'm talking about avoidance to a greater degree, such as not wanting to do a certain thing, go to a certain event, or even seeking to manipulate circumstances in such a way that I wouldn't have to face whatever was concerning me.  I finally recognized this as a pattern ... and a problem.  

 

For Sunday School, the last few months we have been going through Jim Berg's series on Quieting a Noisy Soul.  And I recognized what I had been doing as a kind of self-protection.  Shielding myself from things that could hurt me.  Surely, that is not my job, but God's!

 

🌲 I went to my prayer journal and added "an unwavering trust in God" as the most important character quality I want to work on.

 

🌲 I then went to the section of my prayer journal where I keep my pages regarding character flaws and sin issues.   I first made a page titled "Lack of trust".  (With each of the pages in this section, I list out verses that will help me to see why the particular issue is a problem biblically, and also verses that will help me to move forward and do right.  Below is a scan of one of my pages:

 

 So the verses I listed out for my "lack of trust" page were as follows:

"And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You."  (Psalm 9:10)

"The fear of man bringeth a snare; but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe."  (Proverbs 29:25)

"The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knoweth those who trust in Him."  (Nahum 1:7)

"Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of His servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light?  Let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God."  (Isaiah 50:10)

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

 

"The LORD redeemeth the soul of His servants; and none of them who trust in Him shall be desolate."  (Psalm 34:22)

 

"Be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God ..." (1 Timothy 6:17)

 

"What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee.  In God will I praise His Word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me."  (Psalm 56:3-4)

🌲 A note from the Scofield study Bible concerning "trust" reads: "Trust is the characteristic Old Testament word for the New Testament 'faith' and 'believe'.  It occurs 152 times in the Old Testament, and is the rendering of Hebrew words signifiying 'to take refuge' (Ruth 2:12); 'to lean on' ((Psalm 56:3); 'to roll on' (Psalm 22:8); 'to wait for' (Job 35:14)."

I thought it would be helpful to look at those Scripture references, so here they are:

* "The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust."  (Ruth 2:12 -- where trust signifies to take refuge)

* "What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee."  (Psalm 56:3 -- where trust signifies to lean on) 

* "He trusted in the LORD that He would deliver Him: let Him deliver Him, seeing He delighted in Him."  (Psalm 22:8 -- where trust signifies to roll on; He rolled Himself on Him)

"Although thou sayest thou shalt not see Him, yet judgment is before Him; therefore trust thou in Him."  (Job 35:14 -- where trust signifies to wait for)

🌲 For good measure, I made another character flaw/sin issue page for my prayer journal, this one titled "Tendency to want to manipulate circumstances."  I found this tendency in myself quite alarming, as I have never considered myself to be a manipulative person.  But in recent months I have noticed a desire or wish to manipulate circumstances or outcomes, as mentioned earlier.  Below, the verses I chose for this page:

"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God."  (2 Corinthians 3:5)

"O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself; it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps."  (Jeremiah 10:23)

"Man's goings are of the LORD: how can a man, then, understand his own way?"  (Proverbs 20:24)

"The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me; Thy mercy, O LORD, endureth forever; forsake not the works of Thine own hands."  (Psalm 138:8)

"Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in Him; and he shall bring it to pass."  (Psalm 37:5)

🌲 As I do whenever I settle on a word for the year, I will be making a Pinterest board for the word "trust" where I'll place all sorts of helps and good reads to help me in my application and following through. 

And that's it for my word this year!  I always want to emphasize that choosing a word for the year is completely optional and up to the individual.  It doesn't make one any more or less spiritual; for me, it's just another help to greater personal growth, something that works for me.

If you do choose a word, though, I would love to hear!

How my word for the year -- "Continue" has looked so far

 

 Back in March I wrote a post about how I hoped that my word for the year would be looking.  Here's the link: How my word for 2024 will look.  

So it's probably high time I report in on how the year is going in that regard.  I'll say up front that there is good news and bad news.  I will put the updates in a different font.

As you may remember, this was the definition:

And, as I mentioned, in choosing the word continue for this year, I was mostly thinking about continuing on faithfully with a number of things, most (but not all) of them related to my spiritual life. Let's look at the various parts of the definition and how they might look in everyday life.

First, "persist in an activity or process".  I'd relate this to Bible study and blogging.   I intend to persist in both of these. 

 Bible study is a given.  There is so much more I want (and need) to learn about God's Word!

And I can report that now, at the end of summer, I've continued with Bible study as I planned.  I'm currently working on the study of Habakkuk pictured below.  I want to study Hosea next -- not a formal study like this one, but something simpler.  That said, I love the Daily Grace studies!

Blogging might be considered much more of an option, a personal choice.  But is it really?  I don't think so, at least not for me.  Blogging, I've come to believe, is an integral part of living out God's purposes for me.  It's a way to use the talents, skills, and even some of the spiritual gifts God has given me, to bless others.  So, as I said at the outset,  this is an activity I'll be persisting in for sure.  It's looking fairly consistent, and I did manage to post every day in July for Christmas in July at my Christmas blog.

Recently, too, we were visiting with old friends in Canada who hadn't been familiar with my blogs.  When the wife realized how many of my recipes were located therein, she declared, "I'll never use Goo*gle to search for a recipe again!"  So I see another reason for continuing to blog.

Then, "carry on with something that one has begun".  I had been hoping we could get back to getting together regularly with a younger couple we had been informally mentoring.  I had been chatting with the wife weekly by phone, and that has been wonderful, but in-person time is important as well. However, some changes in their living situation may have brought that hope to a halt for now.  We will see.

I had been hoping and planning, too, to get back more faithfully to decluttering and downsizing.  I've started that; have done some closets and dressers and have continued going through our many bookshelves.  We've made a good start on the attic and my craft closet, but oh, there is still so much more to do!

In another instance in carrying on with something I've begun -- I had gifted six of my teen grandchildren the Stand Firm Bible study from The Daily Grace Co.  I've finished my own study of the book, and found it a great blessing.  My intent had been to have a group chat with them weekly via email, but so far that's only happened once. 🙄.   Obviously I want to carry on with encouraging them to study their Bibles for themselves.

I have learned that two of them have completed the study.  I'm pretty sure at least one hasn't even started, and I'm not sure about the other three.

I do have some ideas for Christmas and birthday gifts along this line that I hope will get them meditating on God's Word for themselves.

I failed to mention this in my first post, but another thing I'll be carrying on with is my volunteer work at The Wilds of New England.  I imagine my hubby and I will be spending a good bit of time helping  with maintenance projects there in the late fall and likely some in the winter too.

Another thing to carry on with (unless or until God shows me differently) is listing and selling small vintage items from my childhood home on Etsy.  There is so much more to go!  I have shelves, a half dozen boxes, and even an entire dresser full of these small treasures.  It could take me years just to list all the paper items, so I'm thinking I may need to zero in on the children's books and see if I can get some of those out of the way.

I have listed a few more books and cards, but it's been slow going.

And then, "remain in a specified position or state".  I'll continue teaching Sunday School to ladies, at least for the foreseeable future. We are going to be doing a video series next (starting in a couple weeks) which will be watched as a group with all of the adult Sunday School class, then we will divide up as men and ladies to discuss.  That way the ladies will still get to keep their class and teacher.  I've been praying about what to do when that series finishes, and I do believe God has given me direction on that.

  I'll also continue with writing Sunday Scripture blog posts.  And with other things like writing notes and doing other things to encourage friends and family.  I've been keeping up with all that, and am praying about what to do next when I finish my Everything Beautiful Scripture series.

And "carry on traveling in the same direction".  To me this zeroes in on spiritual growth.  I've said before how our former pastor who retired after decades often reminded us that there is no standing still in the Christian life.  If you're not moving forward you're moving backward.  Period.  So very obviously, I had purposed to carry on with traveling forward in my pursuit of spiritual growth.  And I've been doing that.  I've even changed up a little bit in my devotional life to keep it fresh and varied.  It helps so much.  You can read about it here: Variety -- the spice of my devotional life.

Finally, "extend farther in the same direction".  For me, this speaks to my prayer life. I'd been hoping for some time to update some of my prayer journal pages to make it even more of an effective tool.

And at last this is an area where I can report progress!  If you read my "variety" post above, you'll see that I'm incorporating prayer journal pages into my quiet time one day a week.  I only have a few pages left to update in my own prayer journal, but I'm trying to make one for my husband as well.  That is going to take some time to complete.

This "extending farther in the same direction" also applies to my memorization of the book of James, which my younger friend Jennifer and I had been working on together.  We finished chapter 2 and that's where it seems to be stalled.  I do need to get back into it.  Gayle, a lady in my Sunday School class this summer, has shared with us how she has memorized entire books of the Bible and it really has been an encouragement to me to jump back into it.

And, I see now that some of the things on my list really fit with definition 2 of continue at this point -- "to recommence or resume after interruption."  My James memorization, my checking up on the teens with their study of Stand Firm, our in-person time with our younger friends -- all of these have been somewhat interrupted or stalled, so it's time to face that fact and see about resuming the ones I can.

What about you, friends? If you chose a word for 2024, how is that playing out for you?

Variety -- the spice of my devotional life

 

 I've alluded to this a bit before, but haven't gone into detail.  I seem to need creativity in my life on a daily basis, and even though I don't always get to work on a craft as I'd like to,  I do find joy in realizing a creative solution to an everyday dilemma or need.  Such has been the case with my quiet time.  

I love Bible study and journaling and there are just more studies that I want to do than I ever seem to find time for.   In 2024, things have been ever so slightly better in that regard and my devotional life has been spiced up with a little creativity.  I thought I'd share in case others might be interested in taking a similar approach.

This year, I determined that I wanted to journal through Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life, by Charles Swindoll.  It's one of his older books and I acquired a hardcover copy of it last summer.  Each reading includes a devotional lesson, a "Deepening Your Roots" section with Scripture to look up, and a "Branching Out" section with ideas for applying the lesson to real life.  This book, though, has devotional lessons only for Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with a "Growing Strong" section on Saturday where one journals about how applying the lessons for the week has worked out.

 So, that leaves Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday to do something else for Bible study and quiet time.  In fact, it leaves Saturday too, because the "Growing Strong" wrap-up doesn't involve much, if any Scripture.  So this is how I'm using those four days each week:

 Tuesdays and Thursdays I work on SOAPing the Scripture from the Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan that I'm using for my Sunday Scripture blog posts.  You can read about the SOAP method of Bible study here if it is new to you.  

On Saturdays I'm working my way through a Bible study on Habakkuk.  You can find it here: Even If.

Prior to beginning this study, I completed another on the armor of God.  Although it may seem slow to work through a Bible study like this only one day a week, I find it is far, far better to do this than just to lament the fact that I don't have time to do all the studies I want to.  Far better to work on it once a week than not at all, and I do eventually complete them.

On Sundays, I usually work on making a new page for my prayer journal or a page in the prayer journal I'm making for my husband.  This involves either searching out and/or copying Scripture relating to a particular attribute of God or a relating to an issue in my life that I want to keep before the Lord in prayer on a regular basis.   For the longest time, I felt so frustrated that I wanted and needed to make new pages for these prayer journals, but it would never get done.  It finally occurred to me that this would be a good devotional exercise for Sundays.

(And by the way, if you don't have a prayer journal or the one you have isn't working for you, check out this post:  How to Make a Prayer Journal (which, interestingly, is the second most popular post of all time on my blog!).  You will probably also want to read this one: Using a Prayer Journal.  I find that there's pretty much an endless list of things I want to pray about regularly, like specific character flaws in my life, for example, so I am frequently adding to my prayer journal.  The posts I've linked to will show you how to do that.)
 

   This varied approach to my quiet time surely has been a blessing to me, and I hope others may be encouraged to try something different as well.

Quote for the day

 

Image by Pixabay

 Inspired by my devotional study of Charles Swindoll's Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life, I've begun the daunting task of cleaning and organizing my computer desk.  If that sounds like an odd inspiration, I'lll quickly explain.  Today's devotional reading in this book was all about orderliness and how important it is. Verses from Proverbs were cited as well as Paul's words to the Corinthians and Colossians.  

Some probing questions were asked including if the reader could easily find important documents, or if one's desk remained permanently cluttered.  My hubby and I have struggled for years with trying to get our paper clutter under control -- so that question is one we will be addressing yet again.

The desk question also struck a nerve.   Although I can frequently clear my little crafting desk in our bedroom (and it always fills up again), my computer desk is another story.  It has a bookshelf as part of it  and I had done lots of decluttering of those books.  But on the small shelf above that, oh, what a mess.  I had many very dusty CDs that I will never use again, a desk lamp that I literally never use, and so on.  So I dived in.

In the cleaning and sorting that ensued, a yellow post-it note surfaced.  

 There is no indication where I heard or found the quote, or who said it, but it certainly is wise advice:

"At the fork in every road, choose the road that brings you closer to God."

I need to take this to heart.  There are so many choices, so many forks in the road even in a day, never mind a lifetime.   May I always choose the road that brings me nearer to my heavenly Father.

How my word for 2024 -- Continue -- will look in my life this year

 

Even though I decided on my word for 2024 fairly quickly, it took me awhile to write about it.  Now, though admittedly still behind, I thought I'd jot down some thoughts about how that word -- continue -- will hopefully play out in my life on an everyday basis.

Recall, here is the definition:

As I mentioned, in choosing the word continue for this year, I was mostly thinking about continuing on faithfully with a number of things, most (but not all) of them related to my spiritual life. Let's look at the various parts of the definition and how they might look in everyday life.

First, "persist in an activity or process".  I'd relate this to Bible study and blogging.   I intend to persist in both of these. 

 Bible study is a given.  There is so much more I want (and need) to learn about God's Word!

Blogging might be considered much more of an option, a personal choice.  But is it really?  I don't think so, at least not for me.  Blogging, I've come to believe, is an integral part of living out God's purposes for me.  It's a way to use the talents, skills, and even some of the spiritual gifts God has given me, to bless others.  So for sure, this is an activity I'll be persisting in.

Then, "carry on with something that one has begun".  I am hoping we can get back to getting together regularly with a younger couple we had been informally mentoring.  I do chat with the wife weekly by phone, and that's wonderful, but in-person time is important as well. 

I'm hoping and planning, too, to get back more faithfully to decluttering and downsizing.  I've started that; have done some closets and dressers and have begun going through our many bookshelves, but oh, there is so much more to do!

In another instance in carrying on with something I've begun -- I had gifted six of my teen grandchildren the Stand Firm Bible study from The Daily Grace Co.  I'm not sure how they are doing with it.  I'm keeping up with my own study of the book, and finding it very much of a blessing.  My intent had been to have a group chat with them weekly via email, but so far that's only happened once. 🙄.   So obviously I want to carry on with this important activity.

Another thing to carry on with (unless or until God shows me differently) is listing and selling small vintage items from my childhood home on Etsy.  There is so much more to go!  I have shelves, a half dozen boxes, and even an entire dresser full of these small treasures.  It could take me years just to list all the paper items, so I'm thinking I may need to zero in on the children's books and see if I can get some of those out of the way.

(Looking for a vintage Little Golden or Junior Elf book?  I might well have it.)

And then, "remain in a specified position or state".  I'll continue teaching Sunday School to ladies, at least for the foreseeable future.  That may change once we've completed this study, but that's months away.

  I'll also continue with writing Sunday Scripture blog posts.  And with other things like writing notes and doing other things to encourage friends and family.

And "carry on traveling in the same direction".  To me this zeroes in on spiritual growth.  I've said before how our former pastor who retired after decades often reminded us that there is no standing still in the Christian life.  If you're not moving forward you're moving backward.  Period.  So very obviously, I am purposing to carry on with traveling forward in my pursuit of spiritual growth.

Finally, "extend farther in the same direction".  For me, this speaks to my prayer life. I hope to update some of my prayer journal pages to make it even more of an effective tool.

This also applies to my memorization of the book of James, which my younger friend Jennifer and I are working on together.  We finished chapter 1 during the last quarter of 2023, and hope to get through chapter 2 by the end of March.  That should give us the remaining three quarters of 2024 to finish memorizing the final 3 chapters (which are shorter than the first two).  We will see!

So there you have it, a little late.  

Jennifer left a sweet comment on my March goals post and noted that these were wise and purposeful goals.  I can't tell you how much that encourages me.  It made me look at my goals with fresh eyes, and I was struck by how many of them involved continuing.   I've been continuing with these things throughout January and February and, Lord willing, will continue on with them through the remaining ten months of 2024.

What about you, friends? If you chose a word for 2024, how is that playing out for you?

Goals for 2023

Life can be kinda crazy, don't you agree?  And I find that if I don't have some goals to aim at, it's very easy to just get through each day without making it count for God.  I'm pretty sure I didn't set yearly goals in either 2021 or 2022.  (I did in 2020, but we all know how that went.)  So for 2023, even though I am late posting them, I have set some goals -- goals in keeping with my word of the year, focus.  Here are the areas I've set goals in, including some of my specific goals for each area.

Personal growth (I included both spiritual and intellectual growth, as well as character development, in this category): Work on character qualities of unselfishness, kindness, compassion, perseverance, and self-control.  Work at eliminating the time-wasting habit of procrastination.  Read through the Daily Walk Bible.  Study, memorize and meditate on God's Word daily.  Continue my study of Lamentations.  Read at least 12 books.  Nurture creativity.

Health (includes physical, mental, and emotional health):  Exercise and/or walk at least five times per week.  Get enough water, sleep, fresh air, and sunshine.  Continue intermittent fasting.  Cook and eat with health in mind.  Do something creative or craft-related every day.  Journal and write as often as possible.  Continually cultivate the habit of gratitude.  Continually seek to be joyful and to keep my eyes open daily for the little things that make each day special. 

Marriage/family life (includes homemaking): Plan periodic getaways.  Take the best possible care of my husband and help him in every way possible.  Take advantage of every moment together.  Take time for dates.  Find moments of relaxation with my husband as often as possible.

Relationships outside the home:  Be more of an encouragement to my daughters, friends, and the ladies  who will be in my Sunday School class.  Stay in better touch with faraway friends and family.  Make myself available to help and encourage those who are nearby.  Continue blogging as a means of encouraging other ladies.  Work harder at cultivating extended family relationships.  Plan trip to visit faraway family.  Plan fun activities with nearby grandchildren. 

Homemaking:   Minister to my husband and others with the gift of a peaceful, orderly home by decluttering the entire house and implementing homemaking routines.  Get serious about downsizing.

Money matters:  Spend less on groceries on a weekly basis.  Continue selling small vintage items on Etsy.  Consider doing some writing for paying publication.  Prayerfully finish up my trust responsibilities, seeking God's continual guidance as I do.

Ministry:  Deepen my prayer life, praying regularly for those with deep needs. Work on a study to teach as a women's Sunday School class starting late spring or early summer.    Continue with our volunteer work in maintenance at The Wilds of New England.  Minister to others with hospitality as the opportunities arise.  Prepare to speak at a ladies' brunch in May.

Have you set goals for 2023 yet?  I don't make New Year's resolutions, but I do find it very helpful to consider and set goals for a new year.  I'm certainly late doing that this year!  You can find further inspiration on this Pinterest board of mine: A new year, a fresh start.  Happy 2023, and happy goal setting!

What I'll be focusing on for 2023

 Others may be wondering what living out my word for 2023 is actually going to look like.  I'm working on a more detailed post concerning my goals for the year -- or the eleven months left in it.  But here's just a quick overview of some things I want to focus on.

🌿 Time with God -- I not only want this to be an important focus of my life, but I want to truly focus on God during my time with Him.  That may sound odd, but believe me, it's highly possible to focus on time with God and not focus on Him.  For example, you're reading through the Bible in a year, but you zip through it so you can cross it off on a list or chart.  You're not really getting much out of what you read.  Or you have a structured prayer list (and I'm not saying this is a bad idea), praying for specific people each day, but again you zip through it just to have it done and cross it off, not really considering the needs of those you are praying for but just generally asking God to bless them.  

So I want my time with God to be focused and meaningful, a two-way conversation as it were.

🌿 Personal growth is in great part a natural result of time with God.  When I think of personal growth, I think of both spiritual growth and growth in character.  With each year that passes, I am more conscious of just how few years I might have left in this life.  I want to make each moment count for God and I want to be strong in character and in my spiritual life.  That means, again, quality time with God each day.  It also means that I face up to my character flaws and begin, with God's help, to grow and change in those areas. 

🌿 Health -- I'm really trying to focus on my health this year.  I want to be as healthy as possible, so I will feel my absolute best and will have the energy and stamina I need for serving God and others.

🌿 Marriage and family  -- After my relationship with God, my relationship with my husband is my highest human priority.  So my marriage needs to be another daily focus in my life.  It's so easy to just go through each day in a kind of humdrum way, not taking time to appreciate and enjoy the things that make our marriage special.  We should never take a day together for granted.  

Family also needs to be a focus.  What do my children and grandchildren need from me?  My prayers, for sure.  Awareness of needs in their lives so I can bring those before the Lord.  And I won't have that awareness without communication.   Sometimes they need my presence in their lives.  Always they need to know I will be there for them and that I am praying for them.

🌿 Homemaking -- I'm determined to focus more on my homemaking this year.  It would be so much easier to keep things clean and organized if I would seriously declutter and downsize.  I truly want my home to be a place that ministers to others and offers them a peaceful respite from the world.  It is that already, but it could be so much more with a little more attention.

🌿 Ministry needs to be a focus too.  In Sunday School yesterday morning the emphasis included using our spiritual gifts to love and serve one another in our local church and beyond.  As I worked through some of the lesson questions on my own in preparation for class,  I was struck by how God is giving me more opportunities than ever to use my spiritual gifts.  I'm not currently teaching, but He has given me so many other ways to give and serve that I can't help but be encouraged.

🌿 Friendships and church family -- I want to be much more intentional with my friendships this year, staying in better touch with some and maybe rekindling some old friendships.  Our church family too -- they are far more than just people who happen to attend the same church.   I read this quote on my friend Whitney's blog, Come Home for Comfort, and was so blessed by it:

“When God saved us, He made us members of His household, and He gave us as gifts to one another. Each brother and sister is a portion of my gospel inheritance from God, and I am a portion of their inheritance as well. We are significant players in each other’s gospel narrative, and it is in relationship with one another that we experience the fullness of God in Christ. 

"Hence, the more I comprehend the full scope of the gospel, the more I value the church for which Christ died, the more I value the role that I play in the lives of my fellow Christians, and the more I appreciate the role that they must be allowed to play in mine.” (Milton Vincent)

Speaking of quotes, I have in my prayer journal a number of quotes from various people, many of them from Elizabeth George.  The one below is really impacting my thinking for this year:

"We have a limited number of years left to change and grow, to follow God's plan, and to live a life marked by diligence.  But just think what can be accomplished for God and for others when we walk in godliness and diligence for our remaining years!

" We dare not waste our most precious resource -- our lives.  We must number our days -- and use each and every one of them for God's glory!"

With that in mind, these are the major things I plan to prayerfully focus on in the next 11 months.  What about you?  What are you focusing on in 2023?

Strengthening your prayer life

 

A meaningful graphic by The Daily Grace Co.

 I often find great ideas for blog posts on Instagram, especially in encouraging graphics from The Daily Grace Co.  The one above, titled How to Strengthen Your Prayer Life, is a great case in point.  Many of us have a goal to strengthen our prayer life in 2023, so I thought I would make use of this little graphic to share how I intend -- with God's help of course -- to do so.

💚  Make the time. 💚

It's so important, if you intend to strengthen your prayer life, to set aside time to pray every day.  If setting aside time to pray is new to you, start with 5 to 10 minutes and spend every bit of that time praying.  Set a timer if you have to.  At this point my prayer time is between 30 to 60 minutes.

💚 Create a specific place. 💚

It's true that you can pray anywhere, at any time.  Think of Nehemiah and his "arrow prayers".  However, it's also important to have a specific place where you meet with God every day.  My prayer place has been a cozy corner in our bedroom, a comfy rocker in an upstairs hallway, and is now a comfortable chair in a corner of our living room.

💚 Write them down. 💚

Write down your prayer requests in a notebook or journal.  I've written a number of posts about my prayer journal and how to build one.  Just click on " prayer journal " in the label cloud.  I believe it's important to write down our requests so we don't forget them and also so we can cross them off with a "PTL" when God answers.

Sometimes I also like to write out some of my prayers.  I keep these in the front of my prayer journal, and sometimes I go back and pray through them again.

💚  Reflect and give praise.  💚

Reflecting on all that God has done, and praising Him for those things as well as for the various aspects of His character, is an important part of every prayer time.  In my prayer journal, I have pages for many of God's attributes, along with relevant Scriptures for each one, and I pray through one of these each day.

💚 Be persistent. 💚

Keep on praying, even if you don't feel as if you see God working.  He is always working behind the scenes even when we don't see it.  Don't give up.

And be persistent in having your prayer time every day.  Don't get discouraged if you miss a day, or even a week.  Just jump right in again and build that habit!

💚 Pray in community. 💚

If your church has a midweek prayer service, make it a priority to be there and to pray with others.  If not, or if you can't get there, find a like-minded friend and get together to pray.  Praying in community is powerful.  I know one lady who prays with a friend on the phone every Monday night.  They have been prayer partners for years.

These are some of the ways I plan to strengthen my prayer life in 2023.  How about you?  Do you have some goals for prayer this year?  With God's help and in His strength, you can achieve them!