new year – Daily Graces

Happy New Year! We had a full Christmas and New Year, hence the radio silence here. But I’m happy to say that though it was a season of newness, (we celebrated my brother’s wedding and bought a new van while on vacation), we are settling back into our familiar routines. Homeschool, playgroups, making bread and finding order amidst chaos. Hopefully this also means some more regular posts from me, along with a few new resource ideas I was dreaming up on our long car rides this holiday season.

Have you seen the Veggie Tales rendition of the story of Jonah? It’s quite comical, as Veggie Tales stories often are. Jonah, played by an asparagus, teams up with a caterpillar named Khalil and a band of pirates whose theme song revolves around their pride in not doing anything. In the opening scenes, Jonah enters the town of Joppa while the villagers sing a song asking Jonah, “What’s the word?” They want to know what God’s Word or message is, and they know Jonah is the prophet through whom God speaks.

As we have officially entered the New Year, it is a great time to pause and ask this same question: What’s the Word, Lord?

I recently listened to the New Year’s episode from Abiding Together, a podcast hosted by 3 lovely Catholic women. Every time I listen to the podcast I feel uplifted, inspired and usually convicted to dig deeper into some area of my life. This episode was no different. The women discussed their twist (and others have done this as well) on a New Year’s resolution. Rather than making a commitment to do or not do something on their own, each woman has prayerfully and thoughtfully chosen a word to serve as a theme for 2019. This isn’t something they came up with all at once, but is the fruit of nearly a month’s discernment. For each of them, they spoke about how the previous year had gone and how this new word for 2019 is building upon or growing out of 2018.

I love this idea! I loved it so much that my first instinct while listening was to pick the first thing that came to my mind and claim it as my word. (Exactly the opposite of their process.) Thankfully, I’m slowing myself down and plan to spend a good portion of January reflecting on this question: What’s the Word?

The women had some great ideas for how to go about this, especially if you are someone who is just starting to deepen your relationship with God. Go to the Scriptures, especially Isaiah 61:1-3

“The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion— to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory.”

This passage holds special meaning for the podcast and is full of hope and comfort for the New Year.

Other ideas for lectio divina would be the Beatitudes, the Psalms, and John 17. You might also consider spending some time in adoration, devoting yourself to talking through this question with God. If it is a challenge to get that solitary time away because of your family schedule, maybe talk with your spouse about spending a few extra minutes in prayer after Mass, or arriving early and you spending that time speaking with God (perhaps from a different pew *wink wink).

If you’ve struggled with New Year’s resolutions, or are already struggling with this year’s, maybe a word for the year will work better for you. I think it’s going to for me and I’m excited to explore its possibilities.

Have you tried this before? Would you consider it now? What ideas do you have for discerning God’s Word for your year? I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas. Use the comments or head over to any of my social media spots and let us know what you think!

Happy New Year! I know it’s a common thing to say, but wow did 2017 go by fast! We had a busy year, new assignment, new house, new baby, new friends and so many memories. While 2017 seemed to be a year of newness for our family, I’m hoping 2018 is more of a year of settling. We are settling into Ben’s job, being a family of 6, homeschooling 3 kids, and finding our favorite spots around Del Rio.

A big part of New Years time is always the topic of resolutions and goal setting. For the past year I’ve been trying hard to stay on top of my planner. Using a paper planner has been a game changer for me as many of you know. It has changed the way I clean, the way we are organized and lowered my stress level (most days at least). It has made me realize just how much I was trying keep track of in my brain and how unrealistic my expectations were. It has also made me more accountable, both to myself and my own goals and to my family. I have found so much freedom within the structure of organization.

I’ve noticed how the planner has helped me break down tasks so they aren’t so overwhelming. This is especially true when it comes to cleaning. By creating a routine of cleaning different areas of our home each day I can happily look around a relatively clean home. I am also less stressed about the areas that are less than clean because I know that I will be working on them in the near future. It’s written down, so I know I won’t forget. And it’s written down so that I can cross if off when it’s accomplished. The work isn’t as intimidating since it is broken up into smaller, realistic pieces.

A few months ago I introduced you to The Daily Decalogue of Pope John XXIII when I offered my Advent Lectio Divina Journal. I mentioned how I hoped to look at each of the points in the Decalogue and decided to kick off the new year with another excellent point.

Only for today, I will make a plan for myself: I may not follow it to the letter, but I will make it. And I will be on guard against two evils: hastiness and indecision.

Friends, I don’t think there could be a better New Years resolution for me. My planner has opened my eyes to how much time I truly have and is slowly helping me to use that time well. Before a daily plan for myself, I floundered. Things got done of course, but hastiness and indecision ruled. Now, most days at least have a plan, an order, a structure. I don’t always get everything done, but I have a clearer vision of what actually needs doing.

A recent addition to my planning is a simple sheet of paper which I laminated so I can use dry erase markers on it. It says “Only for Today” at the top and is inspired by the Decalogue point above. It has space for 3 kinds of tasks: “must do”, “want to do” and “like to do”. I only allowed myself space for 2 “must do-s”. 3 for “want to do” and 5 “like to do.”

It was so hard to limit myself to only 2 “must do-s” but as I was building the worksheet I kept the words of Pope John XXIII in the forefront. In order to guard against hastiness and indecision I had to be methodical and decisive. Those “must do-s” really need to be concrete and achievable. They must happen today. The “want to do-s” are things that I want to happen soon, meaning if they don’t get done in 2-3 days they get bumped up to a “must-do.” The “like to do-s” are the most broad and are usually where I put bigger goals that may need to be chunked into smaller pieces. I also will put a craft goal here as a motivator to get those “must do-s” done. Remember, priorities.

I love this simple exercise. It is training me to prioritize my time and helps me hone in on the essentials of the day. It’s so awesome to see how a small change can yield some pretty incredible fruit.

If this kind of small change sounds like one you would like to try, here is the FREE pdf printable!

I hope you each have joy and peace awaiting you in this new year. Happy 2018!