My word for 2016 was Surrender. I blogged about it earlier this year HERE. It wasn’t a word that I was thrilled about, but I knew that it was a word I needed. I knew the Lord would redeem the word and make it something that would be a blessing instead of something I dreaded and even ran from.

The first part of my surrender was to start up some women’s activities at church. You might say that is not surrendering, but for me it was.  You see, I had gotten into a bad habit of apathy. I used my day job as an excuse to not be active. Sure, I am exhausted from my job, but the Lord promises to give us the strength we need to do His work. So we began a monthly breakfast and a quarterly activity like a craft day, a Christmas tea, etc. We also started a Ladies Bible Study, which was by far the most rewarding thing. For such a small church, we have had a huge turnout. Women are hungry to share, grow, and be encouraged.

Another part of my surrender was the surrender of my time. As an empty-nester, I have a lot of time in the evenings. I tend to just watch Netflix and play games on my iPad (all part of that apathy and tiredness from my day job). I have tried to start writing again, but the surrender part was difficult, especially with outside circumstances got in the way. Which brings me to the last of my surrender.

It was a difficult year for my family. Just lots of stuff going on…some good, some bad. I really had to let my instinct to step in and help…aka be bossy and nosey….go and just surrender it all to the Lord. He can make good out of bad way better than I can. While it is not in His plan for bad things to happen, He can heal and bring good out of any situation.

There is a sense of fulfillment and peace in surrendering to the Lord. I know He wants the very best for me – I just need to surrender to Him and His will for me. Sure, there are bad times. We are never promised an easy life. But the journey we travel in this world develops our character and hearts to become the people He can use for His kingdom.

God knew I needed this word for this particular year. Surrender…a word redeemed.

p.s. I’m so excited about my word for 2017!

***Picture by markuso at freedigitalphotos.net***