Monday morning on the way to work I heard the radio DJs discussing the concept of “un-resolutions.” They explained that a pastor had come up with idea that instead of making a list of resolutions, people should choose a word that represented what they want to work on during the year. He calls his idea “My One Word, and says the “process provides clarity by taking all of your big plans for life change and narrowing them down into a single thing. One word focuses on your character and creates a vision for your future.”
The concept made a lot of sense, and I decided to join in. The three DJs shared that they had chosen Balance, Patience, and Discipline as their words. Listeners called in to share their words. All of the words were great and any of them could certainly have applied to my life.
I was leaning toward Balance, with a goal of balancing different aspects of my life: prayer and worship, work and family time, and Bible study and service, leisure and writing, etc. I recently re-read Joanna Weaver’s book Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World. Joanna wrote about the need to balance sitting at the feet of Jesus with time spent in the kitchen (or serving). Balance seemed to be the word God was speaking to me.
During my Tuesday morning devotion, I was reading from the Prayer of Jabez devotional. It focused on Psalm 18:19, “He rescued me because he delighted in me.” I’m not sure that I ever consciously recognized that God delights in me before I read that. At noon, I read a blog in which the writer committed to memorize two scriptures each month. She is starting the year with Psalm 37:3, 4. And there in verse 4 was that word Delight again. “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” I guess God wanted to make sure He got my attention, because Psalm 37:4 appeared in an email devotion I read before going to bed Tuesday night.
After encountering Delight three times in one day, there was no doubt in my mind about what word to choose. Delight is going to be my One Word for 2011. I will strive to delight in God and to remember that He delights in me. Delighting in God will cause me to keep my eyes focused steadfastly on God and off myself. Reminding myself that God delights in me will encourage me that God always has my best interest at heart and will keep me from getting discouraged when things are going the way I think they should.
What One Word will you focus on in 2011?
Susan's Reflections 