Momentum For Monday, January 1st 2024
“No, dear brothers, I am still not all I should be, but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead…” (Philippians 3:13)
The first of the year is always a great time to reset and refocus. The holidays are over. The chaos has settled. The new year begins. I don’t plan resolutions, but I do have plans, goals, and dreams for the year.
The last couple of months of the year, I try to journal and reflect a lot. Slowing down allows me to focus and recover from all that’s been going on. I think back on the good, bad, and the ugly, while trying to be grateful for it all. Then I pray and seek God to see what else He may want to show me. If you tend to do the same type of thing, then I want to give you a couple of tips as you head into 2024.
Whatever setbacks, failures, or losses you endured the previous year, let them go. I struggled with this for years and still have to make a conscious decision to not carry unnecessary baggage. If God forgave it, I need to forgive also. I’m not saying it’s easy, I’m just saying it’s the right thing to do (trust me, I’m constantly working on this). Besides, bitterness is a toxic trainwreck to the soul.
If you’re going to plan and prepare, also embrace and prepare for setbacks. Failure, problems, and detours are all part of success. Almost nothing goes as planned or hoped and that’s okay. Growth is almost always never linear. Trusting that God got the process from start to finish saves so much worry and anxiousness.
As you go into 2024, I pray for blessings and favor on you and your family. May you experience lots of laughter and joy in the days ahead. And even if things come out differently, just remember to trust that God’s got you, because He does.
”You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your book!”
(Psalm 139:16)