Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze straight before you.

Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. 

Proverbs 4:25-26

I love Jesus. 

I want to be more elegant with my words, pack more of a punch with them, but quite simply, I love the One who has delivered me from a life of sin, redeemed me, and is transforming me into His likeness. If you personally know me, you’ve likely heard me talk about Him and seen me tear up in gratitude. 

I don’t ever want to lose the tenderness I feel towards my Father. I don’t ever want to forget what He’s done in my past, fail to see what He’s doing in my present, or trust that He’s working all things out for my future. 

Because of this deep love for Him, oftentimes I find myself agreeing to do anything that could honor Him. I long to serve Him and sometimes get in over my head with the number of things I commit to. He has been showing me that part of the reason for my unbridled “yes” is because there is a hidden reason of wanting to earn His love and make up for a past that was not pleasing to Him. And He is only asking me to BE WITH HIM. There is nothing I can do to make Him love me more – He loves me just as I am. 

So for 2022, my word of the year came easily. I knew what it would be months ago because of what He had been showing me in this area. 

FOCUS

To start the year, I gave up a few things that I was doing for Him, in service of being more flexible to His daily calling. It was heartbreaking because I really enjoyed my other ministries and knew that He worked through those, too. But I realize that if I am ever to be my best at anything, I have to stop having my foot in too many things. 

This is part of my personality. Sometimes it’s because of the people pleaser in me; sometimes it’s because of just wanting to do all I can for Him, but I get easily distracted. 

If Satan can’t reach me anymore by tempting me with obvious sin, he’s going to try to get me to do so much for God that I can’t be successful at anything because I’m stretched too thin. 

So for this year, I am narrowing my focus to a few things that He is calling me to put my time and energy into, with a flexible and open mind that there may be great adventures (good or seemingly bad) that I will go on with Him and that I never knew were coming. Seeking Him daily is the only way to know where He will lead. 

I would like to encourage you to do some soul searching and seek God in your own life. If you have yet to live a life of daily surrender to Him, start there. Just BE with Him daily and get into a routine of inviting Him to open up your eyes to the great adventure He’s leading you on. If He is calling you to serve Him in some capacity, get out there and do it! If you’re one like me who has a tendency to do too much, for whatever reason, figure out where your focus should be and be content there. I believe we will find that the outcome is going to be far more influential if we focus on a few things to do well, rather than trying to take on as much as we can cram into a day. 

What is He calling you to focus on this year? Be brave and take the first step, then the next. He will be with you as you journey together through the good and the bad, working all things out in ways you likely never imagined!