One Word

Bible Reading: Psalm 27:4-8; Luke 10:38-42

“Stephanie loaded the last cup in the dishwasher and sighed. It was another new year, and all her friends had lofty goals to accomplish—make the cheerleading team, run a mile in a certain amount of time, learn to cook like the next Master Chef. God, I’m just so tired! Stephanie prayed silently. But I feel pressured to make grand goals like everyone else.

Stephanie’s eyes were drawn to the windowsill where several rocks each had a single word written on them. She noticed a new one that said Trust. Stephanie smiled and pointed at the rock. “I see God gave you your word for the year, Mom!”

“Yes! He kept reminding me of Proverbs 3:5—‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart.’ We’ve been through a lot of changes lately, and sometimes that makes me feel overwhelmed. I knew He wanted me to focus on trusting Him this year.”

“Do you ever make New Year’s resolutions anymore, Mom?”

“Sometimes, but after I heard about choosing one word for the year instead, it changed my perspective. Remember the story about Jesus going to Mary and Martha’s house to visit?”

“Yeah. Martha was busy getting everything ready while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to Him. When Martha got mad and wanted Mary to help her, Jesus told her that Mary had made the better choice.”

“Right!” Mom said. “She had chosen the one thing that mattered—Jesus. While resolutions are important, I found it easy to get caught up in trying to ‘make myself better’ and ‘do more’ instead of remembering that Jesus saved me and made me a new person. I needed to take a step back and focus on Him.”

Stephanie picked up the Trust rock. “Do you have any more of these cool rocks, Mom? I want to start one this year and tell my friends about it.”

“Sure do!” Mom rummaged through a drawer. “Has God given you a word already or do you need to pray about it some more?”

“Oh, He already let me know.” Stephanie grinned. “My one word this year is Be. This will remind me that I don’t need to do more and add more things to my list—I just need to be with Jesus in each moment He gives me.”

-Savannah Coleman

How About You?

Do you struggle with the need to do more, be more, or keep up with everyone else? It’s good to learn new things and make goals for yourself, but don’t lose perspective of what really matters—Jesus! He saved you from sin and gave you a new life. Because of His sacrifice, you’re already enough. As you go about your activities this year, put your focus on Him.

Today’s Key Verse:
Psalm 27:8 My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
Your face, Lord, I will seek. (NIV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Focus on Jesus