Devoting A Year

"The discipline of daily devotion to God undergirds decisions." Edwin Louis Cole

This year has been one marked with various mountains and valleys. A year that has tested my faith, my strength, my compassion, and my heart. It would not be a small venture to say that I have grown as an individual, as a Christian, as a wife, and as a daughter. The path that I have chosen proved that following your own desires often causes a harder travel. As I realized that my footsteps were not aligned with Christ, my desire to follow Him closer grew stronger. That is why this year I have decided to make some changes in my life. They are as followed...

1. Stay Devoted to Christ Daily. "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful."

2. Embrace Relationships. There are individuals in my life that I know I take for granted. I pray that this upcoming year, God sheds lights on those relationships and I learn how to enrich them.

3. Live a Healthier Life. This encompasses physically, emotional, spiritual, and mental health. I hope to surround myself with those who love the Lord and will help build me up when I fall.

I think that every desire for this new year would fit into one of the above categories. Now I have a challenge for each and every one of you. I pray that you help me stay focus and that those who feel compelled to help do so. If your desire for this year is to do the same, I will support you the best way I know how to: prayer.

Dear Gracious Heavenly Father, I pray that as this new year approaches that I may start it off correctly. I ask that You guide my steps, my heart, and my head. For those Lord who may be doing the same, please be with them as well. In Your Sons name I pray, AMEN!

Thanksgiving

John F Kennedy once said, "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

Throughout the month of November, I participated in the the Thankfulness of November. Each day, I wrote about things that makes me thankful. I will be honest, this has been hard. It was challenging some days to find something thankful. This is when I realized that I am human and that there are days that are greyer than others.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

One of God's will for our lives is to be thankful. Like I mentioned earlier, I know this is always not easy. It is hard to go through a trying time and stop to praise God for the trails.

There are times that I feel that thanksgivings is a blessing. Why? God blesses us far beyond what we deserve (I will be the first to admit this). We should honor His will by our actions, humility, and thanksgiving. The holiday's are just around the corner. God gave us a precious gift, His Son. How are we going to honor Him for that? Like JFK said, we should not only express our thankfulness but demonstrate it as well.

Dear Heavenly Father, Your love is more abundant than anything. I come to you bowing my head and heart thank you for the many blessings You have bestowed upon me. I know that I do not deserve them. May I lead my life as an example of humility and thankfulness. In Jesus' name, Amen.