Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Adios, Blog--My One Word 2012

As I mentioned in my previous blog post, this blog will go inactive as of today. This will be my last post for an indeterminate amount of time, as other things have risen on my priority list and replaced keeping this monster going.

And so, here it is: My One Word 2012

TRUST
What kind of person do I want to become this year? That's such a loaded question. There are so many things I'd like to be, so many things I want to do better, so many habits I want to get rid of. But my relationship with God is the center of all this, and if it's not growing, then I'm not really going to accomplish anything of worth. Any progress would be in my own strength, and that's not ideal or even acceptable.

I've been doing My One Word ever since the beginning in 2007. Some words have proved very fruitful in my life; others, not so much. But that wasn't the words' fault. It was my own. Often, I didn't keep focus as I should. But 2012 is a new year and I'm determined to deepen my walk with God through fully trusting Him. With every area of my life.

It seems so impossible. When I think of what I want to be and do, I think of what's holding me back. I think, “Why is it I don't do what I already know God has told me to do?” “What is holding me back?” The biggest answer to that is fear: fear of loss, discomfort, loneliness, rejection, death, sickness, aging, eternity. The list can go on.

But I know that nothing can separate me from the love of Christ. It is wide and deep and long and unconditional. He holds me in His hand and will not let me go. I am chosen, sealed, kept. All things work together for my good.

So, what kind of person do I want to be? Someone at peace, not driven by fear, firmly planted in God's word and ready and willing to go and do whenever the Lord calls. I want to see the blessings of a close walk with God, not what I'm giving up or losing. I want to trust God with everything, not holding back because of I'm afraid of the consequences. I want to boldly move forward after hearing from God because I know His way is best and He loves me.

Is it scary? Absolutely. Can I do it? With God's help, yes. Will it take deliberate work? Yes. Will it be easy? No. Will it be rewarding? Yes. I have to do this—God has laid it on my heart. So here we go!

Jeremiah 17: 7, 8 Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.


Pick your own My One Word here: My One Word

Friday, January 20, 2012

An Announcement, etc.

You know how life is...we have seasons where a certain thing is very important, when the time it demands from us is acceptable, enjoyable. But then activities are added and others have to be subtracted. I'm thinking it's time to let the blog go.

I will no longer be participating in the CSFF Blog tour (it's the only one I do anymore) because I'm too erratic with it and I don't think I'm helping the tour or the authors. I won't be reviewing books here anymore because I do that with Suspense Zone and Title Trakk. The only thing I will probably miss posting are my yearly updates on My One Word...which I am still thinking about this year but haven't decided on yet. I think that will be my last post for this blog.

I hate deleting things that have been online...I don't like thinking that people can't reference my reviews or other thoughts if they want to (even me, in case I can't find the file on my computer), so I'm leaving the blog up, at least for now. But it will be inactive, so don't expect to see any more posts, except one before the end of the month for MOW.

I'm going to try to commit to journaling more, for personal use, and then use FB for any important notes that I want friends to see. If anyone reads this and can think of a good reason to maintain my blog, please let me know. Since I'm not writing anymore, I don't see a web presence, at least with this venue, being too important. I do love the blog tours (I used to be a member of three), but with home schooling, church, bible study, and other things, I can't swing them anymore. I'm glad to at least still be reviewing occasionally for the aforementioned wonderful sites.

So yeah. Thanks for following and for reading, those of you who did.