Have you heard of the One Word project? Basically, instead of making a list of New Year's resolutions that you probably won't keep past January, you pick one word for the entire year. This will be a word that you can apply to all areas of your life. This word will guide you all year long in making changes and reaching goals. Your word choice is not to be taken lightly.
In 2016 my word was FORGIVE. What a difficult year that was! All year long I struggled with forgiving people whose words still stung, even after many years. All year long I sought to forgive people whose actions changed my life in very unpleasant ways (and that's putting it mildly) that subsequently caused a chain of further difficult events. All year long I looked to God for help with forgiveness because as Matthew 6:15 says, "if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive yours".
In 2017 I chose the word CHANGE, or maybe it chose me. That year "change" just kept knocking at my door. I changed the way I ate, slept, spent. I made changes in the way I prayed and studied the Word. Change completely marked my life that year.
This year my word was WISDOM. All year long I trusted the Lord with all my heart and did not lean on my own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).
I attempted to apply wisdom to everything I did: I chose my words wisely, used wisdom in making decisions, and gained wisdom through immersing myself in God and his Word. Because I lacked wisdom, I asked God, and He gave it generously without finding fault (James 1:5). In my search for wisdom, 2018 became a treasure hunt, "for wisdom is more precious than rubies" (Proverbs 8:11).
So as the new year approaches, I have applied the wisdom gained this year to select a word for 2019...and the word is (drum roll, please!)...CONNECT.
My mission this year will be to connect with God deeply in every way. Connecting with God on a deeper level will lead me to forge and seek Godly connections with others. I will search for ways to connect more with the community and with those in need of connecting.
This coming year I plan on researching connections that will bring in money (money to pay off debt, money to help others with).
1 Corinthians 6:19 says that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, therefore, I vow to connect more with my body to achieve better health and have strength and energy to serve well.
In 2019 I will dis-connect (as much as possible) from social media so that I can connect with Jesus and set my mind on things above (Colossians 3:2).
Find your word in the Word and have a blessed and happy new year!