2014

Where do I go from here? What do I do? Which road do I take? Which way do I sway in this dance? I don’t know! I would like to say I don’t care, but I do. Do you make lists? Lists of what you accomplished in 2013? Lists of failures? What you want to do, goals you want to reach in 2014? I want to! I have formulated them in my head. They just haven’t made them to paper yet, which is odd because everything in my head eventually makes it to paper. As I was discussing my weirdness last night with a friend, I realized I have some little tiny goals I have to complete. We tend to always look at the big picture and set our goals. Like I want to lose 100# Well Hello! Don’t start with that! How about you start with I want to get healthy in 2014. Cut back on my sugar, go with low fat! Limit the doughnuts and chips! Eat fruit and veggies. Walk a mile instead of watching that television show. Then before you know it, the pounds will be falling off, but more importantly you will be feeling better. You will have more energy and you will be able to move without your knees complaining. And as you feel better you will want more of that! Those pounds will come easy with health as your motivator! My thing or one of my things is this; I have watched TV for a long time, Danny and I watched a lot of TV! So for the last year I have just quit watching TV. I don’t know why! I don’t enjoy it! But I still feel the need to DVR all my favorite shows. But then every time I think I will watch one of them, I don’t. So I have all these series taking up space on my DVR and I have no desire to watch them, but yet I can’t bring myself to delete them. That’s what I want to do this New Year! Either watch them or delete them! That’s easy enough! Right?

Philippians 1:6

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.

My desire to quit watching TV started after I prayed for God to make me healthy, to clean me up, and to give me a heart like His. I didn’t even finish last season’s finales! And they are still on my DVR. But what I do now instead of watch TV is read my Bible; write words that God gives me, pray! But no TV!

2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV)

¹⁷ Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

When I prayed for health, I had no idea He was going to clean up my spiritual health. But He did. Yet I cling to the old way by not deleting that! I have no doubt I am not going to watch it! It’s as if I can hear Him say every time I look at TV, wouldn’t it be better to sit with me for a while? Let’s talk! Get your coffee, I’ll get the word. And how can I argue with that? So I am sure, as sure as I am writing this on paper that I am going to hit the delete button. There is like only 10% space left on my DVR because of all the junk that I have recorded! How much space do you have left in your life for Christ? Is it 10%? 50%? With a new day, a new year, we have a new slate! There is nothing stopping us from hitting that delete button on all the garbage in our life so that we can free up space for Jesus! I am going to start by deleting all that “stuff” taking up space. Then I am going to start looking at other areas of my life. I know I have lots of trash laying or lurking around in my body, my heart, my mind! It takes up space that I could turn over to Christ! If I will let it go! I am beginning to think I am a hoarder not just in my physical realm but in my heart and mind. I get all these things, thoughts, emotions and I think I need to hang on to them. But I don’t and that’s one of the things on my list for the New Year! Letting Go! I need to let go of the things I have no control of, and let God have them. He knows the plans He has for me! I just have to trust Him. He is working everything out for my good! We are just along for the ride!

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

That verse has become my light when it’s dark. My hope when I am hopeless. My strength when I am weak. I know He wants what’s best for me just as He does for each of you! I am holding on to that promise. I know it will happen in Gods time. Not mine. I just have to be patient and wait upon the Lord! Not an easy thing to do, but while I am waiting I am talking with Him! I am praising Him for all He’s done for me! I am serving Him! I am hopeful! I am obedient, while I am waiting!

Psalm 40:1 (NIV).

¹ I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

I am running a race! But not just a race, THE RACE! And during this race, we wait. We learn at the feet of Jesus! For this race is not one of speed, but of endurance!

Galatians 6:5

The Message (MSG)

^4-5 Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life.

As we run our race, on our road of life, we run into temptations along the way. The devil has to try and trip us up. He has snared me plenty times. And does every day! And trust me, I get discouraged. But I am grabbing an accountability partner this year! More than one actually, and I am going to defeat the devil instead of being defeated! Because as a wise friend once told me, “The devil has no power over us except when we allow him to influence our thoughts and words.” So I don’t know about you, but “I ain’t got time for that!” The devil has no place in my life! And if that means surrounding myself with people to remind me of that, then so be it!

Psalms 136:3

O give thanks to the Lord of Lords!

That’s my number one goal for this year! Because without Him and all He has done, I would be doomed! But thanks for Jesus Christ dying on the cross for me, for you, we have eternal salvation. All we have to do is ask!

Romans 10:13 (KJV)

¹³ For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved

Isaiah 12:2 (KJV)

² Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation

As I move into the New Year, my prayer is to listen to God, not man! Go where He wants me to go! Follow His goals not mine! He has already set down what we need to do! How we need to live! You don’t need to say; yeah I need to lose weight. Just say, Lord, create in me a new thing! Do away with the old! Give me your heart. Make me like you! That was my prayer on April 6, 2013. I will never forget that day! I was broken! Physically, spiritually, emotionally…broken. But God picked up the broken shattered pieces and put them together better than I could have imagined. And He is still working on me! I always see areas in my life that need cleansed up! But little by little bit by bit I run that race, I avoid that temptation, sometimes I get snared by the devil but I can always come back to the One who loves me!

Praise God, there is nothing we can do that would make Him say, you can’t come back! We are human, we mess up, and we ask for forgiveness and because of the cross and the blood that Jesus shed for us He always forgives!

Matthew 21:22 (KJV)

²² And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive

As you embrace 2014, my prayer for you is to begin everything with prayer. Ask what you should do in every situation before you do it! If you are a list maker, let Him help you! Let your goals be for God this year! I can guarantee you will grow! Your path may not be easy but it will be rewarding. You will never be alone and He will always answer your prayers! Just believe and receive!