Are You Ready to Surrender?

We imagine that in a moment of dramatic testing, we’d be the one to take the bullet. To make the sacrifice. To surrender ourselves to save a loved one.

Yet we get angry if someone squeezes in front of us in traffic?

Sometimes the small tugs of war are the important ones. It’s the little things that more often test our resolve to go higher.

So how can we be more loving in our ordinary, daily moments of life? One way is to surrender to the moment.

By taking one moment at a time, we can learn the art of surrender.

Our grand moment of surrender is always this one.

5 Little Things to Give Up in the Moment

Here are 5 little things we can practice giving up, anytime, anywhere, to gain the gifts of surrendering to the moment.

1. GIVE UP THE LAST WORD

In that discussion with your partner, eliminate a few of your own words and listen to more of theirs. Surrendering the desire to be understood and to get in the last word can make a joyful difference in the climate of your home. Marvel at the self-control you can exercise when you know it’s best to keep quiet.

2. GIVE UP YOUR PLACE IN LINE

That harried mom with the whiny toddler? Let her cut in line at the grocery store. Or make room for that speeding maniac to merge in front of you in traffic. By surrendering your place in line—literally and figuratively—you practice showing kindness to others. Releasing the need to be first is an act of freedom.

3. GIVE UP THE CLEAR ANSWER

Sometimes we hesitate and wait for overwhelming confirmation before we’ll take a risk. But rarely will we have total clarity in the moment. Surrender your desire for perfect vision and look instead for beauty in the uncertainty.

4. GIVE UP DOING IT ALONE

Winning the prize for “Most Independent” isn’t necessarily a trophy you want. Being a loner isn’t the happiest way to live. Practice humility by accepting help from others, and exercise empathy by giving help to others. Moments with others are a valuable source of joy.

5. GIVE UP A SPECIFIC OUTCOME

It’s easier to surrender to the moment if you can let go of the future. Instead of insisting on a specific result, be open to a variety of outcomes. You can’t control the future anyway. This moment is the only time we ever have.

Little Moments Are Big Moments

Surrendering to the moment, even if it’s a moment of creating change for the future, is a pathway to gaining peace. That’s huge.

Maybe these little moments, even this very moment, really are the biggest moments of all.

What little things are hard for you to surrender on a daily basis? What helps you give them up?

Share in the comments.

Read more:

• What Are Middles For?
  This moment is never a throw-away. Middles aren’t meant to be wasted. Middles are meant to be lived.
• Be Today Who You Want to Be Later
  We have a long time ahead to live with ourselves. Start getting it together now. 
• Frame the Moment to Last
  These teen girls had marked time with impermanence and uncertainty. But framed properly, a single day can last a long time.

revised from the archives

“All that you touch
You Change.
All that you Change
Changes you.”
– Octavia Butler

SUNDAY AFTERNOON IN THE BIG RED CHAIR

We snuggle into the big red chair, my three-year-old grandson and I, settling into the quiet joy of a lazy Sunday with nothing on my to-do list. His little arms rest beside mine as we munch on our afternoon snacks—veggie straws for him, animal crackers for me—while his current favorite show, Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, plays on the TV.

In this episode, Daniel is anxious about starting a new school. Through the screen, Daniel asks a question: “Do you go to school?”

My grandson nods, completely at ease. Yes, he does.

In the next scene Daniel plays with blocks and other toys in his new classroom until it’s time to clean up.

Daniel then asks another question: “Will you help me put the toys away?”

And without hesitation, my grandson gives an answer I won’t soon forget.

LOOKING BACK, LOOKING FORWARD

Lately, I’ve been tracing ripples—my One Word for the year—both those that led to me and those I hope to send forward.

As I look backward, I find ripples from my ancestors to me. I sift through old photos from my childhood, piecing together stories of the past. I turn the pages of my mother’s handwritten journal, hearing her voice in words she left behind. We clear out my late uncle’s house, discovering bits of his young adulthood we never knew.

And I look forward to ripples I want to create in my life to positively affect others. I’m working on my end-of-life plans to make things easier for my children when I die. I’ve been writing down my stories for a Storyworth book to leave for future generations. I’ve been organizing keepsakes for my Grand Box, tucking away treasures I want my grandkids to have in the future.

But has there also been a ripple unfolding right in front of me that I haven’t recognized as such? One that my grandson and Daniel Tiger are showing me?

THE RIPPLE OF NOW

It’s this moment.

Yes, it is good that I’m looking to past ripples and preparing future ripples, but a living ripple is here now. Just as my daughter and I used to watch Mr. Rogers together years ago as mother and daughter, so her child and I are now watching Daniel Tiger today as Granna and grandson.

After Daniel Tiger asks his TV audience for help, my grandson gives a quick, clear answer that I need to hear: “I’m at Granna’s house.”

(Duh, Daniel Tiger.)

That’s it. No excuses. Simple and to the point.

He can’t help there because he is here.

And here is where I am, too.

I recognize I won’t be here forever. Life continues to swirl around me and change every day, for each of us. No two hours are exactly alike.

But this day, this moment, is where the most important ripple is. And it is exactly where I want to be.

Do you need the reminder, too, of the saying, “Be where your feet are“? Share your thoughts in the comments.

“Be where your feet are.”
– Scott M. O’Neil

The Challenge of Staying Present

Do you have a “happy place” you go to in your mind when you want to escape a currently uncomfortable moment, such as when you’re waiting in a doctor’s office, or caught in a traffic jam, or enduring something seriously difficult?

It was a beautiful Tuesday morning and I was actually physically present in my happy place: the beach. All of it was there: the sand, the sun, the crashing waves, the tasty snacks, the paperback novel.

Yet despite this perfect setting, my mind wouldn’t stay here.

It drifted to some dark thoughts, of harsh words heard, of feelings of betrayal, of immense grieving of precious people.

Is the Body Keeping the Score?

An unusually high wave splashed ocean water a little closer to my chair. It woke me up. Back to the moment. Back to the beach. Back to contentment.

And back to curiosity.

• Why, even in the best of circumstances, can our minds not stay centered?
• What makes it so hard to stay aware of where we are?
• Is there a way to lock into the present moment, and stay here?

Pondering the thoughts, my mind drifted to Bessel van der Kolk’s popular book (and now even more popular phrase), The Body Keeps the Score. The premise is that when we experience a traumatic event, it embeds itself into our bodies. Without subsequent healing, even when our minds try to forget the trauma, our bodies don’t forget. Our bodies remember; they keep the score.

The Body’s Memory of Joy

So sitting on the beach I wondered: is the opposite also true? Does our body keep the score from good experiences, too? Like sitting at the beach?

If my eyes are seeing the waves, my ears are hearing the sounds, my toes are feeling the sand, even as my mind wanders back and forth, is it still adding up in my favor?

I don’t know for sure. But I hope it is so, that even when my brain isn’t fully present when I’m in my happy place (I wish you were here), my body is still present. My body is fully alive in this good experience.

Then, when my brain eventually comes home to reality because it always does—oh yeah, we’re at the beach!!!—I can relax even more fully.

Thanks for coming back, friend. Can we sit here together awhile?

What is your happy place? In quiet moments, is it hard or easy for you to stay fully present? Share in the comments.

I’m noting my curious thoughts a little more intentionally this year since my One Word for 2024 is Curiosity. See all my Curiosity posts here.

Ms. Willie is always our last visit. She lives on the top floor of the public-housing apartments that Kay and I deliver supper to on Wednesday afternoons.

With all the others, we knock on their door, give them a box meal, ask how they’re doing, and move on.

But Ms. Willie is different.

She steps out of her apartment in her nightgown to chat for several minutes. She rarely wants the food because she says her stomach has been upset. (Because she also has no teeth, we show her what’s easy to chew; sometimes she takes it, sometimes she doesn’t.)

Yet she never knows who we are.

Every time.

Every week she asks us, “Aren’t y’all new ones?”

We used to say, “No, Ms. Willie. We’re not new. We were here last week, too. Remember?”

But now I’ve started just saying, “Yes, we’re new. I’m Lisa and this is Kay. It’s nice to meet you!”

She then proceeds to tell us how she got her name (from her sweet little ol’ daddy), she asks us to pray for her sister, and eventually says, “I thank you for coming, but I know you’re busy so I won’t keep you.”

But even though I’m sad her memory is fading further and further away, I’m glad she reminds us that we are new every day.

Today is a new one. And we are new in it. We’re not exactly who we were yesterday. We’re not exactly who we’ll be tomorrow.

We’re refilled with a new measure of grace every morning. Every morning we wake up with a fresh supply.

May you remember, too, that you are new today. Everyday. Like new buds opening every day now (I’m so glad it’s spring!), may you also open up to new possibilities every day, new views, new graces.

Embrace the renewed you. You’ve never been the person you are right now.

Today is a new day and you’re a new you in it!

* * *

Where do you hope to see new mercies this week? Let’s talk in the comments.

revised from the archives

“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.”
~ Winnie the Pooh

Hurry Through This

As I wind down for the day, I flip through my podcast queue. I want something interesting to listen to as I tidy up the house, brush my teeth, and get ready for bed.

If I hurry through these tasks now, I can squeeze in more time later to read my stack of books.

I find the podcast episode on The Drive that my friend Kay recommended about time, productivity, and purpose. It sounds perfect for me. I check my settings to listen at 2x speed, and plug in my earbuds.

As it begins, I become more curious about what I’m doing as I listen . . . and scurry about.

I identify the tension: Hurrying is uncomfortable. But not finishing things is also uncomfortable. When you think you have more to do than time to do it, shouldn’t you speed up?

I get lost in the thought and miss a few minutes of the podcast. I’m not concentrating well. I rewind, and reduce the speed I’m listening from 2x to 1.5x.

This is still normal, right? To rush through a podcast about not rushing?

Think About Your 4,000 Weeks

I continue listening as the host Peter Attria interviews his guest Oliver Burkeman about Burkeman’s bestseller, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals.

I remember reading the book when it was first published in 2021. It felt profound to me then and I’ve since returned to it over and over. [I wrote about it here, and about my friend who didn’t get his 4,000 weeks. The book also made my list of 7 New Books to Make You a Better Person.]

But maybe the lessons have worn off?

I remain curious as the discussion continues in the podcast.

• About the struggle we have with the finite nature of time (definitely!)
• About how productivity often turns into a trap (been there)
• About the myth that if we can be more efficient, we’ll have more time and feel more in control (for sure)

I relate to each item.

“Productivity is a trap. Becoming more efficient just makes you more rushed (and also lonelier). Trying to clear the decks simply makes them fill up again faster.”

By now I’m more than curious. I’m convicted.

If You Slow Down . . .

I adjust the setting of the podcast one final time: from 1.5x to 1x, the normal speed of the conversation as they were speaking it, and the correct speed I need to process what I’m hearing. The message for me in this episode deserves more attention.

But slowing down feels counterintuitive to accomplishing what I want.

• Projects will be left unfinished.
• Podcasts will go unheard.
• Blog posts will go unwritten.

Yet when I slow down, I do notice more. I savor more. I feel more rested. I actually feel more joy. Maybe I’m not designed for super speed. I’m made for my own pace, a Lisa-pace.

I finish the podcast. I pull up highlights I wrote in 2021 from Four Thousand Weeks. Oliver Burkeman’s words come to life again as I read:

“What’s needed is a kind of anti-skill: not the counterproductive strategy of trying to make yourself more efficient, but rather a willingness to resist such urges—to learn to stay with the anxiety of feeling overwhelmed, of not being on top of everything, without automatically responding by trying to fit more in.”

Instead of pushing away the angst of “too much to do” by doing more, surrender to it.

“Choose uncomfortable enlargement over comfortable diminishment whenever you can.”

Make peace with the discomfort of never finishing. Delete a few projects altogether. Burn a few bridges of tasks impossible to complete.

“We’ll do almost anything to avoid burning our bridges, to keep alive the fantasy of a future unconstrained by limitation, yet having burned them, we’re generally pleased that we did so.”

Accepting our limitations is progress towards growth.

Then . . . Stop

And at the end of the day? Stop. Even with tabs still open, emails unfinished, and kitchen uncleaned.

“Be willing to stop when your daily time is up, even when you’re bursting with energy and feel as though you could get much more done.”

I’ll never be on top of it all. No matter how fast I run or how efficient I operate. Completing it all is an illusion, a false promise of certainty and security.

I delete a few more newsletter subscriptions, a few more podcasts, return a few more unfinished books. My present moments are limited and used best when unhurried.

Freedom comes when I lay down doing more things, and focus on doing fewer things, the ones that matter the most to me.

Slow down to live more.

I’ll still listen to some podcasts at 1.5x speed and even 2x speed, but when it really matters, I hope I’ll slow down to 1x more often. How’s your speed?

Share your thoughts in the comments.

Read more about time:

• Are You Uncomfortable Filling Your Calendar with Empty Spaces?
  Open your calendar. Do you have enough empty spaces? Can you add more?
• What Time Is It? Now
  Is focusing on the now always wise? How can we find balance between thinking about the past, present, and future?
• Don’t Look Away. These 5 things will happen to you too.
  At first glance, these five things feel too negative to think about. But not thinking about them is worse.

The Book on Boundaries

It sounds like a great book. On boundaries. A great subject.

So I pick up a copy at my library.

But the book is boring. It’s repetitive. It’s unhelpful.

Don’t I already know this stuff?

But if I do already know this material—on honoring boundaries—why am I still reading this book, thus ignoring my own boundaries?

What Buffett Said

There is a popular interview between Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. Gates is asked what he’s learned from Buffett.

Gates replies that Buffett taught him to “fill his calendar with spaces.”

As Buffett listens, he reaches for his small paper calendar. He opens it to reveal all the empty spaces.

Buffett, one of the richest people in the world, says, “Time is the one thing no one can buy.”

Open Your Calendar

If you opened your calendar right now, would you see an overflowing of events, or lots of empty spaces?

If the pandemic taught us anything (and hopefully it taught us a lot of things!), it’s that we can manage with more empty spaces. That we actually need more empty spaces.

There’s a sweet spot between doing too much and not doing enough.

Have you found it?

Prioritize the Empty Spaces

For me, the sweet spot between too much and not enough is a moving target.

While I crave stillness, I still create an impossibly heavy to-do list every day.

So if I truly value empty space like I claim I do, why don’t I prioritize it more often?

Perhaps I don’t schedule more empty spaces because I value productivity more. I value efficiency more.

But in the end, which is really more important?

Practice Being Uncomfortable

So this week, I promise to add more X’s on my daily calendar to indicate open spaces.

It will make me uncomfortable. I will miss out on doing some things that I want to get done.

But learning to live with the discomfort of the unfinished is a valuable skill, too.

For people like me who feel compelled to finish projects, even when they are no longer worth finishing, practicing the skill of walking away—of releasing—may be more valuable than the skill of persevering to the end.

Put the Book Away

So the book on boundaries? I stopped reading it. Right there around page 32.

I removed my bookmark, closed the book, and placed it in the return basket.

To NOT finish a book I start always feels like a small victory for me.

It’s a practice of valuing my own boundaries. Boundaries of interest, of time, of worth.

Perhaps I can learn a lesson from Warren Buffett, too. Including filling my calendar with more spaces.

Creating more empty spaces coincides with my One Word for 2022, Release. 

Read more about time:

• How to Win Your Fight with Time . . . in your four thousand weeks
  The elevator was stuck on the 8th floor. I didn’t know D was dying on the 3rd. Maybe through surrender we can win our fight with time?
• It’s Way Past Time – Why I Gave Up Gone with the Wind
  I saw the book still on my bookshelf. What else is it past time for?
• Your Time with God? It’s Not Just For You
  She called from the airport. I thought the morning lesson had been meant just for me. I was wrong. 
• What Time Is It? Now
  Is focusing on the now always wise? How can we find balance between thinking about the past, present, and future?

I err on finishing even when it’s not necessary, but others err on NOT finishing even when they want to. Which side do you lean toward? What helps you find your sweet spot?

Share in the comments.

sharing at these linkups

Seeing the Decline

I didn’t know if I’d get to see Bill at the hospital last Monday.

I went to see my friend Kay as she sat with her dad, Bill. She and I visited outside his room.

Then her dad needed something. Kay invited me inside his room, too. And I got to see Bill.

I saw how much he’d declined since I’d seen him a year ago at the baby shower for his granddaughter and great-grandson-to-be. Even then he looked more frail than the time before.

But on Monday, I sensed that aging and illness were piling up too quickly for him to fend off.

By Wednesday, I got the word . . . Bill died.

Death by Surprise

I was shocked.

But why does news of a death still take us by surprise? Still take away our own breath, even when we expected it?

We know every one of us will die one day. It’s inevitable. Something will happen and we’ll either stop breathing immediately or within days, months, years.

Yet we don’t want to think about death. It makes us sad.

But what if by looking away from death, we ultimately create more sadness?

5 Things for Everybody

The Buddhist tradition offers Five Remembrances that awaken us from denial and help us appreciate life more fully. They are compatible with Christian faith as well, along with other world philosophies too.

Here are five things that happen to all of us. The Five Remembrances are:

1. I am subject to aging. There is no way to avoid aging.

2. I am subject to ill health. There is no way to avoid illness.

3. I am going to die. There is no way to avoid death.

4. Everyone and everything that I love will change, and I will be separated from them.

5. My only true possessions are my actions, and I cannot escape their consequences.

At first glance, these five feel too negative. Who wants to think about these things?

But thinking about these things isn’t our real problem. The real problem arises when we try to never think about these things.

Pretending we’ll never die can be quite a burden.

Freedom is not found in denial or avoidance or distraction. Rather than depressing us, accepting these five things can help us live fuller lives now. It can help us prioritize being loving people.

I don’t want to take life for granted. Even in hard seasons, I want to stay awake.

By remembering that life is full of change, I want to feel more appreciative of the good things I have now, to think more clearly about how things will change again, and to respond more kindly to those I’m here with.

Accept Death to Appreciate Life

We attended Bill’s funeral yesterday.

As we gathered with other friends and his family who loved him well, I was reminded of these Five Remembrances.

1. Bill aged. I am aging, too. So are you.

2. Bill got sick. I get sick, too. So do you.

3. Bill died. I will die, too. So will you.

4. Everything in Bill’s life has changed. Everything changes daily in my life, too. So in your life.

5. Memories of Bill’s actions will remain. My actions will live on, too. So will yours.

While it might be comforting to think more about what’s next in the afterlife, to stay fixated on the future where problems cease and tears fade, I also don’t need to look away from what is happening here, now, to keep it all in perspective.

My human nature longs to cling to and freeze time, yet my spiritual nature reminds me that holding things loosely is the better way.

By releasing my tight grip on denying death, I open more space for appreciating life.

Share your thoughts in the comments.

These are some of my thoughts with my One Word 2022 RELEASE. 

I’m sharing at these linkups

I didn’t hear the news until Sunday morning. My daughter Jenna sent me a text about the wreck.

On Saturday, June 19, 2021, around 2:30 p.m., a vanload of young girls, their ranch director Candice Gulley, Candice’s two children and two nephews are returning home.

Only two hours to go.

Their special beach vacation to Gulf Shores is over, but their summer is just beginning.

Tropical Storm Claudette is dumping torrential rain onto Interstate 65 as they travel. When they are about 35 miles south of Montgomery, vehicles begin to hydroplane. 

In a moment’s time, seventeen vehicles collide.

One of these vehicles is the van with the young girls from the Tallapoosa County Girls Ranch.

And in another moment, the van catches fire, as would six of the other vehicles that afternoon.

A bystander quickly pulls the driver, Candice, out of the van, but the fire spreads too quickly to save the others.

Eight children die in the van that day.

In a separate vehicle, 29-year-old Cody Fox and his 9-month-old daughter also die.

It’s too shocking to fathom.

Read more here.

I was at the ranch myself six years ago. I remember exuberant life among the girls who lived there. The extraordinary caring of the staff who lived with them.

It’s made this tragedy even more horrific to me.

So I’m reposting below this article I wrote in 2015 after my visit to the Girls Ranch.

It was a good day I’ll never forget. . .

. . .in contrast to June 19, 2021, a horrible, horrible day that many will never forget.

May those who remember be surrounded with love from others for years to come.

We’re also asked to remember their ranch family. And for ranch director Candice Gulley who remains in serious but stable condition in the hospital after losing her own 4-year-old and 16-year-old children in the accident.

If you’d like to contribute toward funeral expenses, medical costs for the injured, and counseling for those affected, here’s the GoFundMe link for the Tallapoosa County Girls Ranch.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

FRAME THE MOMENT TO LAST

[originally posted May 11, 2015]

Fourteen young ladies come out of the two houses.

They live there temporarily, when they’re not living with a relative or in a foster home or as a runaway. In these houses they are fed, clothed, cared for.

And on one special day in November, they are about to be framed.

It is Jenna’s idea. These girls aren’t a project to her or a ministry opportunity.

They are real people; they are young friends.  

So on this Tuesday a professional makeup artist shows up at the ranch to give free makeovers. A stylist to give new hairdos. And a photographer to make it permanent.

As the mother of the photographer, I get invited to tag along with Jenna and take pictures, too. I knew she’d developed her own friendships with the girls, including one in particular, and I am excited to meet them all myself.

Like most teenage girls, they giggle through the make-up and hair sessions. They gawk at the changes in each other. They haggle over who will wear what, and the stash of extra clothes brought in gets divvied up.

Then it is time for the pictures.

One by one—and then sometimes two by three or four—they strike a pose and flash their best smiles or serious looks for the camera.

Then in no time, the afternoon is over and we pack up our gear, hug goodbye, and drive away.

But it’s not over.

Later that weekend, as Jenna begins editing, she calls me with excitement. The pictures are turning out great. The girls show up as gorgeous as they are.

Despite years of pain, of abuse, or of neglect, their beauty and hope still rise to the top. It looks different on each girl, but it’s definitely there on each of them.

The final step comes a few weeks later in the mailbox. I open the package of fresh photos—printed 5x7s of faith, that someone cares, and that someone is worth caring for.

Jenna matches each picture with a frame. Then carefully wraps and ribbons and later gifts these photos and more to the girls to be amazed at their own beauty.

What will each girl do with her photos?

Some will probably go to love interests, some traded among each other, and some probably tucked away in the next packing box as they move along to the next home.

But I pray that the memory of that day in November travels with them wherever they go. That when they see their pictures, they remember that they are loved, that they are valuable, that their life is framed with purpose.

In a frame, things look more official. More real. More permanent. This is who I am; can you see me?

Life never stays static. But catch a fleeting moment at the right time, and it brings more than pleasure for the day; it carries stability and confidence into tomorrow.

Take the shot, freeze the moment, and capture a memory. A memory of a day getting made up, dressed up, and photographed. There may have been tears before (and bruises—I saw some) and tears after, but on that day, I saw smiles and heard laughter.

That was caught in the photo, in the frame, and hopefully in the heart.

A single day can last much longer if it’s framed properly.

In the daily lives of these teenage girls, already marked by impermanence and uncertainty, moments need to be captured forever.

On that day, we celebrated the moment. The girl. The life.

I hope they will remember. I know I will.

Share your thoughts in the comments.

When we read of tragic car accidents or when children die, we all take it personally for various reasons. Share your thoughts in the comments.

UPDATE:

If you’re looking for accountability for your One Word 2022 journey, !

Have you picked one word to focus on in the new year? Now is the time!

Not Another Resolution

A lot of people don’t like New Year resolutions. I get that.

• Resolutions are often too hard (or we would have done them already, right?).
• Resolutions are often too vague or unrealistic.
• And resolutions are easy to forget about and drop altogether.

That’s why I like choosing one word instead. (Well . . . letting one word choose me—that’s often how it works.)

• One word is simple.
• One word is easy to remember.
• And one word is flexible in the directions it can take you.

Only God knows what the year ahead holds for us. So at our invitation, he’ll guide us to a word custom-designed for our year to come.

That’s a good thing.
And a faith-building thing.

For example, when I chose “Breathe” in 2010, I didn’t know it would be the year both my parents would take their last breaths. When I chose “Venture” in 2012, I had no idea I’d be leaving my old religious heritage that year to branch out into a new faith direction. When 2014 brought “Compassion,” it totally wrecked and expanded me at the same time.

And in 2019 when I chose “Hope” as my one word, I didn’t know that a dear friend would die or that I would be on the road much of the year or that God would stretch me in new ways.

Now it’s time to choose for next year.

3 Steps to Choose One Word

Using the acronym LAP, here are 3 steps that help me decide on one word. Maybe they can help you, too, as we all get ready to take another lap around the globe.

1. L—Listen

Pay attention. God is already at work in you, doing new things, preparing you for new things.

Are you hearing repetitive messages on a specific theme? Does a particular song touch you deeply? Have you been drawn to a certain book or author?

God can work through any of these avenues. Listen for his message. Stay present to his wisdom. It’s not something you sweat over, but something you notice and receive. Accept what comes without having to understand it fully. God will reveal more when the time is right.

2. A—Abbreviate

Now is time to narrow your focus. It’s better to give your full attention to one main word or concept than be distracted by a hundred little resolutions. Be most attentive to one thing at a time. This thing. At this time. With this person.

Your one word choice doesn’t have to be profound or complex. Keep it simple and relevant to this season of your life. It’s a step, not the complete journey.

When you welcome whatever comes in this one day—accepting it as your reality and being with it (even if it’s something that needs to change in the next moment)—you stay most in the presence of God. Once you own it now, he’ll guide you what to do with it next.

3. P—Plan

Think of a few concrete things you can DO to help you live out your one word. For 2019 I chose 28 ways to practice “hope” (I wrote it in a series here).  You don’t have to be that specific, but do come up with a few ideas of how you can use your word.

But at the same time, also release expectations of where your one word will take you. Let go of a specific outcome you may have in mind. It’s about the process instead.

Plan for the future, but hold those plans loosely.

There’s no way you can predict how God will use your word. Just know this: God will honor your intentions to honor him through it. Trust that his grace will be enough.

Pray about receiving your word from God, then hand it right back to him.

Let him embed it into your life one relationship at a time, one day at a time, one situation at a time.

He knows what he’s doing. 

* * *

Have you chosen One Word in the past? Do you have One Word for this year? Please share in the comments.

You can join the OneWord365 community here. Get ideas for a word and connect with others who have chosen the same word as you.

updated from the archives

]]> https://lisanotes.com/3-steps-to-choose-one-word/feed/ 73 https://lisanotes.com/get-your-grace/ https://lisanotes.com/get-your-grace/#comments Mon, 15 Oct 2018 10:00:28 +0000 https://www.lisanotes.com/?p=16040 When Some things about God seem even more amazing than others. One such thing to me? Daily doses of grace. A fresh supply arrives every single morning. How does God… ]]>

When

Some things about God seem even more amazing than others.

One such thing to me?

Daily doses of grace.

A fresh supply arrives every single morning.

How does God remember to give us our daily dose every morning?

How can he never run out of mercy, when there are so many of us and there are so many days?

The only way I can explain it is that he is great and he is faithful.

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:22-23

Now is the right season for me to memorize Lamentations 3:21-26. (We’re learning it together at Do Not Depart. It’s not too late to join in. It’s easy.)

And today is the right morning to receive fresh mercies. (It’s always today.)

Three Questions

Here are our three questions of the day:

(1) What is a habit you try to do almost every single day?

(2) When during the year are you most stressed?

(3) When have you been especially thankful for God’s fresh grace?

* * *

What are your answers? Please share in the comments.

My answers

(1) I *try* to meditate most every day. And do a Spanish lesson with Duolingo. And take a one-second video.

(2) The first two weeks of December stress me as I rack my brain to think of which gifts to buy everybody. I’d do it earlier but I don’t want to be stressed then either.

(3) I’ve received tons of fresh grace this year to travel back and forth so often to my daughter’s house to play with our grandbaby.

More here

• The Only Moment Is This One
  And now is where God is. Stay awake to this moment.
• Remember to Use Yours Today
  A fresh batch of grace arrives at the foot of your bed before you wake up every day. Look for your batch of mercy today.
• A Daily Dose to Overcome Anxiety
  God gave it to them daily for their journey: manna. What does He give us every day for our journey? Grace.

Get the whole Handmade series here