I love a new year! It’s a starting point, a clean slate, and a fresh blanket of pristine snow without so much as a footprint anywhere in sight! 365 days of possibilities and opportunities! I wonder what circumstances are in store for me in the next twelve months. Will this be the year God blesses me with things I have asked Him for?
As I thought about these things the other day, I felt God drop a question in my lap… Are you really ready for these blessings?
“I had to stop and consider whether I had positioned myself—my heart, my mind, my body, my attitudes—to receive the things I was requesting of God.”
I had to stop and consider whether I had positioned myself - my heart, my mind, my body, my attitudes - to receive the things I was requesting of God. What if God gave me the specific calling I’ve been seeking? Would I have the sensitivity to hear it? The courage to accept it? The passion to pursue it? The humility to deal with it? Or what if he blessed us with financial security? Have I practiced gratefulness to the point where I would not take such a gift for granted? If relationships were mended would I have the grace to forgive completely and love without restraint?
God longs to give us the desires of our hearts (Ps. 37:4). But while it’s perfectly fine to bring our requests to Him, it’s way too easy to ask for things we’re not in any condition to receive. As I start this new year, I need to invite God to examine and reveal those areas in my life where I need to allow Him to reshape me.
“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” - Psalm 139:23
By spending consistent time with Him in prayer and in His Word I will be better prepared for whatever blessings He pours out to me. I’m so glad He asked the question. Now, of all the goals I’ve set for this new year, my greatest is to ready myself for God’s blessings. I don’t know exactly what that will look like, but as I begin taking steps in the year’s new snow, I’m determined to be following in footsteps far greater than my own.