Wow! I can’t believe it’s 2009 already! Time flies when you’re having fun, eh?
Today is New Year’s Day. I’ve declared it Pajama Day in the AuburnChick home! Rooster and I worked so hard yesterday that I figured we deserved the break.
So, here I sit, in my jammies and fluffy robe, pondering what New Year’s means to me.
I’m not sure that I’m big on resolutions. They never amount to much for me. I guess I just have a bad way of following through with them, despite my good intentions.
Between this post on the True Woman ’08 blog (make sure you read this list in the middle of that post) and this post on Mrs. Pivec’s blog, I’ve been more reflective than past years. Both blogs offer much food for thought. I like that Mrs. Pivec selects one word to focus on during the year. I also love the ten questions that are presented in the True Woman list. They are not for the faint of heart.
I pondered the words I had read. Over and over, I kept hearing the themes of time and debt in my heart.
I think I need to do a better job of managing how I spent my time. I’m not dedicating much, if any (I’m ashamed to say) quiet time reading God’s Word. I’ve used the excuse that the kids and I do devotions on school days. However, that’s no way to build a relationship with God. Relationships require an investment of time to truly get to know the other party involved. A man and a woman who desire a serious relationship do not spend all of their time together in the presence of other people. They spend time one-on-one, listening to each other, speaking the words that are deep within their hearts. Sometimes, they are content just to be together, not even saying a word but simply enjoying the quiet presence of the other person.
The same can be said of growing a relationship with God. Yes, we need corporate worship time. However, we also need one-on-one time. I think of some of the greatest people in the Bible. Men like Abraham, David, and Jesus (I’ll count him even though he IS God) spent many, many hours in solitude, praying and desiring to be close to God. I need to be more like them.
The other issue that’s been on my heart is debt. With the down-turn in the economy and the severe cut in my pay, I’ve felt very convicted for the financial choices I’ve made over the years. I think I’ve confused wants for needs. Somehow, as salaries have increased, my savings have decreased. More money in the paycheck? Now I can up my cell phone plan, subscribe to more channels on the cable box, and maybe even buy more yarn. However, I should have been putting more into savings, paying down things like the car payment and other debt, tithing more, and looking for more ways to give. Putting God first.
Ugh. How I wish for a clean slate – someone to come along, pay off everything for me – and let me start over. But I think that I wouldn’t learn my lessons well that way, now would I? I would probably revert back to my old ways. Metal cannot be purified without going through fire; nor can I be changed and molded into something new without bringing the impurities of my life to the surface so that they can, ultimately, be removed.
So, those are the things I’ve been pondering lately. I didn’t mean for the post to sound depressing. When I reflect, I often do not focus on the good things I’ve done. I look for ways I can grow, and this usually involves peeling back the superficial layers in my life to reveal the blood and guts of that lie beneath…not a pretty picture but present all the same.
Oh, and a few last words before I end this post.
Last night, while watching THE ball drop on TV, I was struck by something one of the hosts said. He said that people are happy to see ’08 go and are looking forward to the new year and the HOPE that it will bring. It was a reminder that each new day presents a fresh ray of hope to start anew. God, in His infinite wisdom, did not make life on earth one long, endless day. I think that would be rather depressing. The rising of the sun each day symbolizes the chance to start over.
God is SO good!
Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: Christianity, God, New Year, resolutions, Revive Our Hearts, True Woman 08 | 2 Comments »
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