ONE WORD for 2014

"But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart." ~Luke 2:19 (NIV)

WOW! I am so sad that I have not posted in almost a year!  Well, I guess I am going to embrace 2014 as a new beginning with new goals and with One Word.

This OneWord365 is something new that I stumbled upon a couple days ago through one of my great friends and cherished leaders, Mary.  What a brilliant idea, to do away with New Year's resolutions and to have God choose one word to work on daily with him throughout the year.  It is a bit scary because this word will change the course of my thinking and my everyday life.  I feel that the word I am choosing was hand picked for me as I look back at this last month and the absolute craziness it has been.

This December has been the busiest December I can remember in my 33 years on this earth.  From work, to birthdays, to traveling and having some travelers here, to sinus surgery - there was no room to breathe (literally & figuratively). Throughout this month, God kept dropping the above verse in my heart and I felt the nudge to really think about what God had been telling me in my quiet time. 

Now, I am a woman and I thrive off of relationships, sharing, and building on others ideas. Even in my journaling, it is hard to not share with one of my close friends what God is sharing with me.  Plus, I know that sharing my heart with a safe person is smart and brings wisdom. However, I felt that there was some key things that God really wanted to share with me and only me, and that he wanted me to ponder these things in my heart as Mary did. Doing this takes time, not something I have much of these days.

I also have had this inner drive and dream to increase in wisdom.  During an inner healing session with a friend, we discussed what wisdom looks like. As I told her about things I said in certain situations and handling some situations - she would say this is what wisdom looks like and would paint a picture of what I could have said or told me great job in what I did say. Thinking about how I phrased my words and how I shared a testimony - that is growing in wisdom. To grow in wisdom, to ponder, and to hear God's voice all took one key thing: the ability to pause.

This thought of pausing was solidified at the Christmas Eve service when I was visiting Seacoast Church.  The entire message that Pastor Greg spoke on was on "Pause". This was part 4 of the series and it was titled, "The Pause That Brings Good News".  Right there on the top of the note sheet was Luke 2:19 - I almost jumped with excitement because I totally heard God say, "Hey Laryssa, yes I Am speaking to you!"  I sat there drinking in the different reasons to pause like pondering, organizing your thoughts, and relating. I couldn't soak it all in fast enough!  It was confirmation that I was definitely supposed to write about pondering and pausing. 

After  sinus surgery on the 27th, I was laying in bed surfing through facebook and came upon this One Word thing. I thought this would be great and I had a pretty awesome idea as to what my word would be since my theme seemed to be pause. Well, God had a different awesome idea! I looked through some of the word lists for ideas and there it was and it couldn't be more perfect : SELAH - to pause!  It is used 71 times in the Psalms and Wikipedia says, "The Amplified Bible translates selah as "pause, and think of that"." How cool is that!?!?

So there you go folks, my One Word for 2014 is Selah. On the surface, this seems like an easy word but the more I think about it, the more I realize it isn't.  I am going to have to pause and think before I react at work, with friends, in the car (yikes), and even in everyday conversations! So this year will be full of Selah, I hope that in these moments of pause I will grow in wisdom greatly, hear God better than ever, and ponder the secrets he has placed in my heart that bring a true smile to my face. :)

Let's Pray:
Papa, thank you for bringing me through 2013! Through trials, tribulations, and joyful moments you are always at my side.  Lord, I pray that you help me pause this year in all moments. Help me to hear and see you in everything around me, to stay focused on you and to "Selah" as I grow in wisdom. Help me to come boldly to your throne, where I will receive mercy and find grace to help me when I need it most(Hebrews 4:14-16), to guide me to pause. Thank you Daddy for loving me for me and for the blessings you have for me in 2014!
In Jesus's Name,
Amen!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!   #onewordthreesixtyfive #Selah #Pause