My 12 Month Challenge to Myself!

Happy New Year! It's 2013 and I am starting fresh. Same old story, right? Gosh, I can't believe that Simply Grace only had 4 posts written by me last year. It seems that I start things and don't finish them. I have such great ideas about impacting my world, and then I wake up and real life sets in. Last year was one of the hardest and best of my life. In the midst of a new spiritual awakening, there was trauma, heart-ache, and raw fear. I am grateful for my faith, it really is, at the end of the day, what I cling to for any semblance of happiness or hope. It sustains me, even though I can go days without sitting down and really connecting with the God who sees me, made me, knows me, loves me, and wants me to have a relationship with Him.

And then I wake up and say, why am I feeling so empty, so unsatisfied, so ungrateful, so stuck? Because I think I can manage my life on my own. Because, even though there are a million promises in the Word of God, I, for some reason don't think they apply to my situation...oh but they will indeed work for you because I know God loves you. I know. That is the key. What do I know? There's so much more that I don't know. I am seeking the Lord's direction in many areas of my life right now and I just wish He would write me a message on my bathroom mirror. He led me to a verse the other day, in response to a prayer. The verse was Psalm 16:11

You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures.

It has occurred to me over the years that if I were to dwell, meditate, pray about and really come to believe even a single verse, that it could actually change my life. So my challenge to myself is this: I will take a verse, beginning with Ps 16:11 and for one month I will pray, meditate, dwell on and study it. I will write about it everyday (that is a biggie, since last year was so pathetic in that dept.). Each month in the year 2013 I will prayerfully choose a new verse and do the same. I am excited to see what the Lord will do with this...because it is Him I am meeting through His word.

As a way of keeping accountable I will blog my progress, my insights, my struggles. Through this journey, it is my prayer that I will meet Jesus in a new and fresh way. I welcome all insights, thoughts, comments and friends who want to join in the challenge. It's not what we know, it's what we believe that counts...Oh Lord, change our beliefs so they meet yours!