We’re opting out of overzealous New Year resolutions and saying hello to a God-given Word for the Year. Bold. Authentic. Stillness These are words I have spent years focusing on. In 2020, when the world seemed to be upside down, I needed the boldness to move 1000 miles away from everything and everyone I knew. By focusing on ONE word for the year, we can learn to grow at a reasonable pace in ways we could never imagine.
Choosing a Word of the Year
Letting God show you a Word for the Year through prayer and scripture reading is the best course of action. You could also create a list of words throughout the year that you’re inspired and challenged by. Then, find scripture to with each word. Through prayer, use process of elimination to find one word to focus on.
In addition to all those, listen to the Spirit. Each of my words showed up in my life in some form before I chose them. I love how the Lord does this. Sometimes it’s through worship or a Sunday message, other times it’s through scripture or an encouraging word from a friend. If you seek the Lord in this decision and truly want to see life change in the coming year, God will reveal to you what He wants you to focus on.
What to do Once You Have a Word of the Year
Put it everywhere! Write it in your journal, in your Bible, on your mirror and in your car. Make a cute wallpaper for your phone. The possibilities are endless. But once you have it, LEAN INTO IT. You will not regret it, I promise you. When you ask God to move. HE WILL DO IT. And don’t forget to tell trusted people about it. Have someone keep you accountable and challenge you to lean into your word when you would rather never see it ever again.
Leave the Outcome to the Lord
This one is hard. I’m not going to lie, I set expectations for what the outcome of my word would bring. But I want to challenge you. Where resolutions and goals and priorities are set, let them go. Jesus can do more with your willingness than He can with your control. I want to share an excerpt from my journal that I wrote at the end of last year, when my phrase/word was “be authentic.”
This is what I wrote:
Being authentic has looked more like unbecoming than becoming.
It’s looked like letting go of all the things I thought were my identity and
stepping into who God created me to be.It’s looked like choosing to believe His Word.
It was exchanging the me I created for the me that was perfectly crafted by
a perfect Creator.It looked like being real and unafraid to show the broken and hurting spaces
in order that they may be healed.It’s knowing that I am the way I am on purpose. All the qualities that make
up who I am, my goofiness and strength, intelligence and beauty, were no
accident. I can rest and be still knowing this is who I was made to be. It is
who the Lord placed here for such a time as this and trying to change that
would be telling Him that His creation isn’t beautiful and perfect.
I love this, because it’s real. My idea for the word authentic was entirely different than the way God wanted to use it in my life. I want to encourage you to be open to the way He can use your word. Don’t force an outcome or try to make it something it’s not. That’s the beauty in choosing a word instead of a resolution, the meaning changes every single day and molds and mends to your life.
Don’t Forget about Your Word for the Year
Finally, don’t forget your word come 2024, 2025, or any year after that. I cannot tell you how many times I have been challenged to be bold (my word for 2020) in the last two years. Just because it’s not your focus for that year doesn’t mean you have to forget all the lessons you learned on the way. We are constantly changing and growing, and boldness has looked different in this season than it did for me in the past. I assure you it will be the same for you and your word. I pray that when I come to the end of my life people would describe me as someone who was bold, real and who knew how to connect with her Heavenly Father. Not just because I used these words for one year, but because I made them part of who I am. I hope this is your prayer too.
Here are a few words if you feel stuck choosing one:
Focus
Vision
Faith
Hope
Love
Celebrate
Brave
Vulnerable
Driven
Compassionate
Pursue
Trust
Forgiveness
Grace
