In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. He observed his creation and determined that it needed more, so he did exactly that — added more. He added value to his creation. With an enormous task at hand, he did it little by little. He made distinctions between his creations and gave them each a purpose. Such a plan took less than a week for our creator, and today we marvel at it in all its splendor. Worthy of note, he rested on the seventh day after finishing his work.
Our plans for our lives will never compare to his, but our thoughts and plans are gifts from him. When we consult him in all matters, rest assured that he will chime in with frequent notifications about our next steps if we keep our notifications on. For that reason, it is important to unplug from all distractions that may cause us to miss notifications from God. Sometimes that means keeping our mouths closed too.
As we grow closer to him in our journey, we feel his presence and see it in everything. We become less critical and more curious about his creations — whether in the work place, the market place, or any place. We long to do better every time we miss the mark, and that is part of his plan as well — to draw us in, forgive us, and teach us to rely solely on him.
Before crafting my vision for the new year, I had a lengthy conversation with the Lord to help me wade through the minutiae that always seem to trip me up.
They say that the devil is in the details, and I think they’re right.
The enemy is always lurking–attempting to steal your joy and squash your plans. If you’re not careful, he’ll try to unplug your connection to God, and then you’ll only hear his messages in the form of negative self-talk and bad behavior.
Here are 5 Steps I Take to Stay Plugged In
- Talk to God all day.
- Read, study, and apply the word of God each day.
- Ask God to connect me to other believers.
- Thank God every day for his unmerited favor.
- Speak life into everyone I encounter. This is a work in progress.
These are not guarantees of a life free of obstacles; however, they are steps toward building a stronger relationship with the one who authored a plan for each of us. Is there anyone greater to partner with? No, there’s nobody greater, and that connection is worth fighting for.
“Worth Fighting For” – Brian Courtney Wilson
Great 5 steps Michelle. Constant prayer and communication, with every breathe. Speaking life into others is the top one. This is one I want to work on for this year with focus and intention. It is easy to catch someone’s attitude, mood, and grumpies. I want to speak life.
Let’s keep each other accountable.
Such encouragement! Thanks for boiling it down to the most important thing Michelle! Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.
You’re welcome. Thanks for reading, Pam. I’ll look forward to our first hug of the new year. 🙂
A great word!! I find that those 5 steps help me along as well!
Thanks, Vicki!
Amen! Love the 5 steps. Thanks for sharing.
Great minds think alike. I had the same four steps for the new year – added the ultra-important fifth. It is a work in progress 😉
If we’re lucky, great minds sometimes work in tandem. 🙂
Thank you! I did just this-turned my phone off-so I could clearly here my notifications from Him. It is so necessary for us to stay tuned in all day. We can miss a lot when we are so easily distracted by things/people that know nothing about the plan He has ordained just for us.
You’re a wise woman.
Super. I look forward to continuing to read your posts, you are putting in work for our Father and at the same time growing spiritually. I could not think of a more worthy and noble cause. Well done.
Thanks, my friend. He deserves all the glory.