Word of the Year

For the past couple of years I have been joining a group of friends in choosing a word to focus on for the year. It is something we pray about and ponder. Usually it is an area we feel the Lord is leading us to focus on or maybe it is something He is teaching us. Sometimes it is a combination of words and not a single word.

My word for 2008 was sorrow. Let me tell you that I did not want that to be my word. It was the first year I chose to participate and I didn't even tell anyone what my word was because I did NOT like it. Who in their right mind would choose sorrow as their word for the year? But the Lord impressed upon my heart that this indeed was my word. As always, He knows best and He taught me much using the word sorrow. The year 2008 was a big healing year for me. But for healing to come I had to face many memories and facts about myself. I had to face things about others.

I had to mourn for loss in my life. I had to mourn for loss in the lives of others. I had to grieve the death of dreams and goals. I had to learn that my Lord is a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3) and that because of that He can heal my brokenness. I had to learn about Godly sorrow vs. worldly sorrow. 2 Corinthians 7:10 says Godly sorrow produces repentance that leads to salvation without regret. My anger and rebellion needed godly sorrow.

Praise God for the word sorrow and it's work in my life.

I had a couple of words for 2009. They were thankful and creative. I was so thankful for all that God had taught me in 2008 that thankful just seemed appropriate for 2009. I also wanted to focus on being creative in my life. Making the best out of hard situations, being creative in relationships, doing crafty things, and being frugal were all ways that I tried to express creativity this past year.

Although the lessons I learned in 2009 weren't as emotional as those in 2008, I still learned some things. I learned to be thankful for special people God has placed in my life and I am learning to love people as they are without placing my expectations on them. I learned to decorate on a budget and have finally decorated most of my house~something I have put off for a long time.

For Christmas, I made many of the gifts that I gave. Not only did it save us money but it gave me a creative outlet.

The word of the year for 2010 is surrender. This year I want to focus on surrendering my will to the Father. I want to be obedient to whatever He asks of me with a cheerful heart. I am looking forward to walking with Jesus with a surrendered heart in 2010. Here is a post I did about my 2010 word. my word for 2010