My New Year’s Resolution (Yes, I know what month it is.)

It’s never the wrong time to turn things around. (Doodle art by Caleb: I found it on his “to do list” that he’d made himself…so proud that he made a to do list!)

Did you make goals for 2016? Or “New Year’s Resolutions?” We’re over 3 months in now. How are you coming on those?

I remember vividly saying something like, “I’d like to get rid of my hip pain. That’s my goal.”

That was it. Even when I said it, I had mixed feelings about having such a simple, dull, and yet seemingly unachievable little goal.

So I went to doctor appointment after doctor appointment. I surely took every blood test ever invented. There were x-rays. We kept MRI’ing the wrong body parts. We never did MRI the hip, but oh well, I’m so done with that.

I completely overhauled my diet, I went to physical therapy, and I had chiropractic adjustments.

And you know what? My hip is better, just as long as I don’t ride in a car, my hip is fine.

No cross-country road trip. No car trips at all.

Oh, and then the v-tach thing started, so also no exercising allowed.

No running. Only walking. No hiking.

Did you say I shouldn’t care because I wasn’t a runner anyway? Ha.Ha.Ha. Well, okay, you have a point…..But still.

The fevers went away for a while, but now they are back, and guess what? I’m feeling depressed. Wait. Am I feeling sorry for myself?

Ugh! How obnoxious!!! But yes, I think I am. Or at least, I’m definitely thinking about it a lot. It’s a problem that I would like to solve. Fevers are about impossible to work through, y’all, and the doctors have no idea why I have them. What can I do?

Nothing, really.

So I think it’s time to come up with a new, FAR BETTER New Year’s goal. I’m a firm believer that it’s never too late to turn your show around. Why keep walking in the wrong direction? Let’s back-track.

It’s time for Plan B.

Turn this train around, JD!!!

I’m going to quote my Life Application Bible study notes on the book of Zephaniah. I literally just opened my Bible, and there it was:

“Hope is the silver shaft of sun breaking through the storm-darkened sky…..Hope is knowing God and resting in his love.”   (p. 1290, 2nd paragraph, Life Application Study Bible)

When hard times rain down on you, and many of you have faced far worse things than I ever have, hope is everything. It’s not an ideal. It’s not a flowery concept. It’s not even abstract. It’s REAL. Hope has to be real in times like these. Hope has to surround you, touch you, and permeate your being.

This is the time for great hope. Changes have to be made!

So I came up with a new goal.

I love this verse:

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.”  Matthew 6:33

If you put God first, everything else will fall into place. That’s what this verse is saying.

I cannot solve my health problems. I tried that. Don’t worry. I’ll still have the ventricular ablation. I’ll still go to the dermatologist and get my skin checked out.

But I want to move my focus. What does this look like? Here’s what I’m thinking:

1. I want to have a solid time of Bible and prayer very first thing in the morning and again, right before bed.

Reading the Bible will not take away my heart disease. Being spiritual doesn’t heal fevers. But God can, and even if he doesn’t, praying and seeking God will have a profound effect on how I handle these problems. I believe I will be more centered, less overwhelmed, and more capable just from becoming more serious about my prayer and Bible reading time.

When things are desperate, who whispers occasional prayers? No. That’s not what you do. You beg. You plead. You mean business. You take those requests to the throne of Heaven over and over and over again. You pray harder.

What will these changes look like?

I started a prayer journal (again) yesterday. We talked about it in Sunday school, and it helped me to solidify my plan. I need a place to write prayer requests and important verses to remember, a place other than just my hand. (Yes, I write notes on my hands.)

No one gets breakfast until after this time of prayer has been done.

Unless they want coffee, juice, or chocolate milk. Coffee is an extremely important part of the plan. I go downstairs, and I pour my coffee. If JD is up, I pour him a drink in his sippy cup. Whoever is awake has prayer and Bible time with me. No sweat. 

I will repeat this before bed. When you have a crisis in life, you have to step up how you meet it, right? There are many great changes on our horizon, and the time to rise up and grow to meet these challenges is now. I will keep you updated on how it goes.

But no more compromising this. I’m letting you all know so that you can hold me accountable. Of course, I will feel sheepish if you mention it to me in person. I am way more shy than you realize.

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart:  and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28

What challenges are you rising up to face? How can I pray for you today? We can do this, y’all. Sometimes we just need grace and determination. I am determined to pray for that grace!!