As this year winds down, I am certain many of you are doing the same thing I am doing….reflecting on the year, cherishing the sweet memories, thinking about the things you wish you had done differently. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get a “do over” on all the things that didn’t go well this year? Unfortunately, that is not how it works. We must take the good with the bad, and move forward into the coming year with intentions of making it great.

As I have pondered the new year, as I have thought on my hopes and desires for this next 365 days, I have decided that I will choose one word to define my year. This one word will be the word I will continually re-visit. I will journal, I will study, I will grow by focusing on this word. I will be all that God wants me to be by keeping my sights on Him, and by thinking on this word.

What is my word, you ask? It is EMBRACE. I want to embrace ALL that God has planned for me. I want to embrace the people He puts in my path. I want to embrace opportunities that come my way. I want to embrace the goodness I see within myself, without feeling haughty or lacking in humility by doing so. I want to embrace my family and cherish our moments. I want to embrace my ministry and watch it flourish. And I want to embrace all this just the way God gives it to me, without trying to change anything to fit within my invisible boundaries of what I think it should be. I get this life, this one life, to do God’s will. I get this one opportunity to be a sharer of the word. I get one chance to use my life to lead others to Christ. I am not going to WASTE this gift….I am going to EMBRACE it.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)