I’m a procrastinator.
You know the type…you may even be one of these… Our excuses for this type of behavior range
from, “I work better under pressure,” to, “I just can’t seem to stay ahead of
everything.” However, in this case, I had mulled my topic over and over in my
mind during the holidays, made some notes over the last few days, and tried my
best to distill it all down to something worth sharing. My deadline is end of day today, and I hope
it doesn’t show!
Hopefully, something in my posting will strike a chord with
some of you. And I invite you to please
post a comment if you react to anything in particular. In fact, in preparation for this blogging
exercise, I went back and read all of the postings since our GSCC blog
began. I had already read some here and
there, but I wanted to be sure to read over what all of the contributors had
shared. So many of the postings were
very personal, and I was struck by the enormous outpouring of faith and
commitment to sharing that precious gift of faith with others, in a word: Evangelization. I was disappointed in myself for not ever taking
the time to comment on postings that truly touched me. It seems only three comments have been posted to a single entry, so far. Sure, we have been moved, and have silently reacted to many, but we just
haven’t taken that next step of posting a comment. Let’s change that! Let’s inspire our contributors to further
sharing, by responding to their thoughts and generating a discussion.
I would like to begin some commentary by telling Lauren, who
most recently shared true inspiration in her “Breadth of Life” posting, that I
was so spiritually uplifted by her contribution. Her wish for us, that we always find the
strength to say “yes” to God’s will for us touched me deeply, since this is
something I think about almost on a daily basis. In fact, this very topic of accepting God’s
will for us will be receiving renewed attention in my life in this New Year.
The Christmas holidays are now over, kids have gone back to
school, families have retreated to their daily lives, and the dreaded process
of taking down the tree and storing of ornaments is behind us. Maybe what many of us feel, in the aftermath
of such a glorious season, is a mixture of both let-down (gosh, it’s all over!)
and relief (how long could the frenzy go on?)
But what remains, really, is the life-asserting knowledge, that while
all the secular signs of holiday cheer have been put aside, the gift of our
salvation endures forever and demands our ongoing awareness all throughout the
year. So while we hear terms bantered about
like January “blues”, “blahs”, or “doldrums”, there is actually much to focus
upon and many reasons to continue celebrating the true meaning of our Christmas
season. Post-holiday “blues”? Bah,
humbug!
New Year’s resolutions, per se, constitute a hackneyed
exercise: every year it is somewhat
incumbent upon us to work up a list of those areas of our lives that “need
work”. Some of these are the usual: lose ten pounds, get more exercise, become
more tech-savvy (depending on your age group!)
My experience has been that by about July, I convince myself that it can
all still be accomplished, and by January, I am disappointed by my lack of
success in most of these endeavors! Then
there are “heavy-duty” resolutions requiring feats of character, personal
improvement, spiritual growth, and outreach toward others. These are the ones that sometimes keep me
awake at night throughout the year, as I
review my daily actions at the end of the day, and realize that not only have I
not stepped up, but may have actually backslid.
And so, another year has come and gone, and like most of us, I have
experienced a measure of success in some areas, and failure in others. But a New Year gives me renewed hope and
determination to continue on my journey, albeit imperfect, to grow in my faith,
to have the strength, as Lauren wished for us, “to say ‘yes’ to God’s will,” and to discern how I can best utilize the
gifts I have been granted. I am always
reminded of God’s reassuring and unconditional love for us in the words:
“Do not fear, for I
am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will
help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. IS 41: 10
May
you all be blessed by a year of health, of strength, of faith, and of joy in
the knowledge that Christ has enabled our salvation. ~Cyndy G
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