This verse keeps coming up in various arenas:
“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (NIV)
I am always invigorated to consider this invitation to co-labor with Christ. We each have a part to play and that is exciting!!! Do you want to put in effort with the Lord to plan your course for this coming year? What are your desires for 2022? Do you hope it is your most meaningful year yet?
Wise planning begins with reflection.
I can’t think of a better way to start the year than to carve out one hour of time to be alone with the Lord to reflect on 2021 and prayerfully prepare for intentional living in 2022.
Over a decade ago, Mark and I were gathering with friends at New Years to stay in a cabin together for the weekend. Being an extrovert, I was super excited for the endless conversation and energy buzz that comes from being with people from the moment I wake up to the moment I lay my head on the pillow.
I was surprised when a fellow extrovert of the group pulled us all together and passed out a worksheet. He asked that we all go find a quiet place on the property, spend at least an hour with the Lord, and reflect on the past year. Then we would come together to process what the Lord was teaching each of us.
I instantly had resistance. I groaned inside my head: a whole hour of silence? That did not sound appealing, especially when some of my favorite people in the world were all together under one roof! I didn’t want to offend my friend by being negative, so I agreed to give it a try.
I had no idea this would not only be one of the highlights of the weekend, but it would also spark a desire for intentionality that is still growing more than twelve years later!
What if I invited you to get quiet and try the same thing today or sometime this week? What is your initial response? Is it full of resistance, like mine? Are you already making excuses why this isn’t for you? That’s ok! Are you willing to give it a try anyway?
If you are experiencing your own ambivalence over this practice, I invite you to simply pause and ask God more questions about it. Does He have something good planned for you with this exercise? What is the root reason you are resisting? Are you fearful of what you may discover? Would you rather spend your time doing something else? Is it easy to make excuses about why you are too busy? What would happen if you just gave it a try? I sure hope you do! In fact, I’m praying for you right now that He would make it possible and beneficial to do this exercise.
I’ve noticed over the years that when a new idea or thought that comes into my head is met with instant resistance, it is something I need to explore deeper. Is that my flesh or sin nature resisting? Is it Satan whispering half truths about why to resist? Is it Christ gently nudging me away from the idea? At times it has been each of these, so now I try to quickly recognize that it requires more curiosity and prayer to discern whose voice it is.
If you discern this is an exercise the Lord is inviting you into and if you are willing, join me in reflecting on 2021 and then prepare for our most intentional year yet in 2022! Even better, invite at least one other person to do this exercise with you so you can discuss your answers.
When you join our free email list, I will send you 52 Questions to answer as you reflect and prepare for your most intentional year yet. You could also choose to focus on one per week to answer if you enjoy less, more often.
Jesus, please guide us all, Amen.
Love you,
Laura