My Phrase for 2011

Every year I try to come up with a singular focus for the year to keep me disciplined in the direction I believe God wants me to take for the year. The past few months as I've prayed over my focus for 2011, a phrase keeps coming to me. I've started hearing it everywhere. In sermons. In books. Even in commercials. And it's not a typical "driven with passion" sort of phrase. That phrase for me is:

REST ASSURED

There's a lot to be said for this determined focus for 2011. Last year I found myself trying to fix too many dilemmas in attempting to provide for my own needs. I ended up "worrying my prayers" rather than walking in complete faith. I wasn't hot and bothered in my worry, but it was a silent pressure always weighing down on me. This year's rest is a different kind of rest. It's not a blind rest. A doubt-filled tossing and turning type of rest. No, God wants me to rest assured that He's handling my life. Rest assured that He is in control. Rest assured that if He leads me to do something He will equip me for the challenge. And rest assured that I don't have to be involved in every good opportunity that comes my way. I knew all of those concepts already, but I'm not sure I was really living them.

So, this is my challenge, and I choose to accept it!

Worry and Prayer

I love what The Message says about worry and prayer. Check it out:

Philippians 4:6
Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

James 1:5
If you don't know what you're doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You'll get his help, and won't be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought. People who "worry their prayers" are like wind-whipped waves. Don't think you're going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.