How to head into the New Year
The lights glow color, shed joy nestled among the needles on the tree in the corner. The boys are asleep, The Mister’s at the office, and it’s just The Friend and I in the stillness of my home.
Turning my heart toward the One Who Knows, I breathe this favorite morning prayer, “What is Your word for me today?” And just like always, that quick it comes.
“Faith-full-ness.”
For just a heartbeat, I pause. Faithfulne…Oh. And ah. Yes. I know,I know what He’s saying.
For days now, and some weeks, I’ve been feeling it. The toxic effects of a vague anxiety. Of nameless fear (and a few I can name). Of the unrest that slips in on the heels of the same, and a leaking away of the joy.
So I do what a child ought to do: I press in, seeking to hear Father’s voice. I want light. Need more insight. Need peace. Want my joy back. Need…Him.
And I find Him in Psalms 25. The language of my childhood, it soothes me. Like that, I’m pressed tight against Him, head leaning on His lap, and the Shepherd Boy, he speaks.
“Unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee. Let me not be ashamed. Let not mine enemies triumph over me.” And this, “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him.”
I drink it in, soak it up. And Father, He speaks again. “What are you afraid of?” No censure or judgment. He’s my Dad. He wants to know, and I, Weary Girl, list it out. He listens so kindly, and then He begins. He walks me through to the heart of each fear. And suddenly, they don’t seem so big. They’re not overwhelming when I tell them to Him, and He invites me once more there to trust.
When we’re done talking in the still of the morn, I feel it. Like a warm, fluffy blanket, peace has returned, enfolding my heart. And the joy…
“Faith-full-ness.” That’s what He said, for He saw that old fear, and He came in sweet love to replace it. Faith-full, He said, full of faith and not fear, and this faith was His best prescription.
Isn’t Father good? Oh, isn’t He kind to come for His own without scolding? He listens, He counsels, He heals and He leads. Leads us on, ever on, always upward.
And that, dear friend, is how I’m heading in to the New Year. My heart’s open. My eyes are on Him, and my ears, they are tuned for His voice.
Faith-full. For when faith overflows, there’s no room for fear. Just peace, just joy. Just Him.
Happy New Year with great fondness,
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