December 28 2020

Finish Strong

FINISH STRONG

There are only 4 more sleeps left in 2020!  This year I’ve talked a lot about being intentional. So, here is one last assignment before the end of the year.  What do you have to do in the remaining 4 days of 2020 to intentionally finish strong? 

To begin, we need to talk about finishing strong.  What does that look like exactly?  What you need to understand is that finishing strong is going to look a little bit different for each one of us, depending on where we have been and where we intend to go. For some, finishing strong may mean finishing up those last few goals, for some it may mean taking some intentional downtime, for others, it may mean look more like working on some relationships, for others, it may mean taking some time to feel the disappointment about things that didn’t work out in 2020 while acknowledging the unexpected graces.  

Step 1- determine what “finishing strong” looks like for you!

Step 2- based on what “finishing strong” looks like to you, decide on 3 items you need to take care of in the next 4 days.

Now it is time to make a plan. Yes, a plan.  I know it is the week in between Christmas and New Years’ – the week we generally move through in a bit of a fog – weary from the holiday preparations, beginning to realize just how much food we actually ate and dealing with the let down of Christmas celebrations. But part of finishing strong is being intentional in these last 4 days of the year. 

Step 3- make a plan.  How will you accomplish these 3 items, in what order, and who will help to keep you accountable? 

Step 4 – make it happen!  There is no time like the present.  Go ahead and get it done.  

Intentionality wasn’t just a buzz word for 2020.  It is a lifestyle choice that I believe we need to continue to grow in, throughout 2021.  Get a head start now. You’ll thank yourself as you enter 2021 with the loose ends tied up from 2020.

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December 20 2020

It’s Almost Christmas!

It Is Almost Christmas!

 

It is almost Christmas! Just wanted to stop by and say hi and see how you are all doing? This is traditionally a week that can turn into a real frenzy with so many last-minute things to catch up on. I was reminded as I did my devotions this morning, that this is the very time when we need to slow down and really take the time to consider the season.

 

Christmas has the potential to come and go and be lost in the hustle and bustle of the “things” we feel we need to accomplish during this time. But what if this year, we made the decision to make it different? What if, this year, we were intentional about setting some quiet time aside, to sit with our Bible, to sit with the Lord, to sit with our family and friends and consider the wonder and the mystery of Christmas. To allow the Father to speak into our lives. To allow the necessity of real relationships to touch us in a meaningful way. To allow, the mystery and wonder of Christmas to touch our hearts and spirits in a way it hasn’t had the opportunity to do so before.
 

I challenge you this week – stop, listen, consider and hear. Don’t let the season pass you by in a flurry of activity that just leaves you weary on the other end and anxious to pack it all up and in until next year.

 

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December 2 2020

Consider the Cost

Consider the Cost

 

In Luke 1, both Mary and Zacharias received a visitation from an angel of God, with a message. The question that often comes to mind when reading this story is what did that message require of or cost each of them. As I mature in my faith, this becomes a more difficult question to answer. On the surface, what was required of Mary seemed much more costly. Zacharias was actually seeing the fruition of prayers that had gone unfulfilled up to now. However, think about the cost of those prayers coming to fruition at this point in time. Sometimes when we receive an answer to prayer that seems delayed in our own mind, we struggle to accept that the timing is right or that we are ready. As well, the magnitude of this promise, and how it signalled the coming of the Messiah, which would not only affect Zacharias but also the nation of Israel, is more than one would process in a few minutes. On the surface, it looks like Zacharias has to just receive the miraculous answer to prayer. However, deeper than that is the need to reconcile the timing and the impact.

 

The cost/requirement for Mary is altogether different. The message required that she give up everything – her body, her reputation, possibly her life if she gets into the wrong hands as being pregnant before marriage is a stoning offence. It seems more straightforward and such a large cost to her.

 

However, over the years, I have come to recognize, that each person’s walk has its own costs and they are so very different and dependent on context that they cannot even be compared.

What “costs” or requirements are you walking through in your own life? Be encouraged, God is not judging your response based on the responses of those around you. He is loving you right where you are in the midst of what He is asking you to do. What an encouragement for us today!

 
 
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