Long before the new year began, I was thinking and praying about 2014. I felt like God was calling me to come closer to him and I was curious about why. Why would he want me to come closer? Was I in trouble? Was I dying and didn’t know it yet? Why in the world would God, creator of the universe and eternal, omnipotent one want me to come closer to him? It made no sense, but one thing I have learned about God over the years is that when something seems utter nonsense to us, that is when God swoops in, puts all the pieces together and creates a masterpiece at just the exact right time.
After much prayer, meditation, study, and more prayer I’ve been led to the following conclusions:
- I am crazy. Or God is. At this point I’m not sure which, but one of us is not quite right. (My bet is that it’s me who is crazy. I mean, seriously, I don’t think it’s even polite to come to any other conclusion.)
- Each year I ask God to give me a word, verse or both to focus on, watch for, and learn from. This year he made it very clear that his word for me is “quiet.” He gave me three verses this year instead of just one, which is rather enlightening too. They are, in no particular order:
A. This is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it! Psalm 118:24
B. Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight. I Peter 3:3-4
C. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! Psalm 7:13-14 - Although I’ve been told to focus on “quiet,” I think I am supposed to write more. My take on that is write more, say less out loud. We’ll see if I can be quieter or write more! Ha!
- Await further instructions and God’s leading rather than jumping into things on my own. This one is hard! I’m passionate and excitable. I’m an impetuous woman at times. So. Waiting will be difficult.
- Last, but not least, I’m to make and do things for others. As I heard a wise man say a long time ago, “Find a need and fill it! Don’t wait for somebody else to come along to do it!”
Anyway, the upshot is, I’m going to be writing my blog much more often. I’ll try to be quieter in spirit and voice. I’ll also try to be less impetuous. I’m going to be doing a lot of knitting and crocheting. I will wait on the Lord, day by day, and rejoice in each day given to me this year in 2014. I can’t wait to see what God has planned! Let us begin….
Do you feel like God has been talking to you about 2014? What has he said? I’d love to hear from you!
Sunshine Lane 