When Your Word of the Year Scares You
One of my favorite traditions to do in January is sitting down before the Lord and asking Him for a word of the year. It’s a way for me to stay grounded and a reminder of what God wants me to focus on. Last year my word was slowness, and boy oh boy did God remind me to slow my roll more than once. The more things I wanted to put on my calendar, the more I felt Him whisper, “not that many things sweetheart.” It was a struggle, especially for someone like me that loves having a ton of things to do on my calendar. It gives me purpose, which is exactly why I believe He made this my word for 2023. So that I could learn to be still and focus on the things He wanted to show me. To find my purpose in His presence and not in my “to do’s”.
By the end of 2023 I was sure I had a word for 2024 already. I thought my word was going to be “savor.” To savor my moments with family, friends, with the Lord, in motherhood and in my marriage. But the more and more I prayed into that word, the more I felt the Lord lead me in a different direction. In a direction I wasn’t too excited about. I wrestled with Him for a bit. “Please God, don’t let that be my word. I need to work on savoring anyway and being present more. Can’t I just focus on that?”
I knew I wasn’t going to win the battle, but I tried to push my agenda anyway. When I finally surrendered, that’s when I came to terms with my word for this year: Trust. It’s a scary word. It scares me because it's something completely out of my control. It means giving God the keys to the car while I sit as a passenger and believe He’s going to get me to our destination. It means that He could put me in situations where my faith is tested and I have to believe everything will turn out okay. But I felt Him say that because it scares me, it’s exactly why He chose that word for me. Because I need to do it afraid and trust that my Heavenly father has got this. After all He knows what’s best for me. I also know that by putting my trust fully in His hands, it will only draw me closer to Him and He will never steer me wrong.
So here I go, giving God the keys and hopping into the passenger seat. Say a prayer for me!
What about you? Do you have a word for the year? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!