It’s New Years and that means it is time for some resolutions and goals. I dig the changing of the calendar, the crafting of goals and the dreaming of all the ways I just might be able to change that bad habit once and for all in this new year. Maybe.
Although I am common sense enough to realize not all my goals will even make it past January 31st, I do like the One Word for the New Year trend. All you have to do is pick one word that will guide you and be significant to you during the entire year. It is not quite as overwhelming as a long of resolutions. It is focused and easy to remember. It’s just one word. I can do that!
I decided on my One Word for 2016: Sit
It’s not very profound or deep but I have noticed a disturbing trend in myself I do not like — I do not sit much. I eat my breakfast over the kitchen counter, I constantly sweep up crumbs like nobody’s business and when I do have a spare moment to sit, I always, always find another chore or task to do.
I’m never fully present.
I can tell myself I am listening to my family as I wash the dishes but in reality, I am not. I can feel like I have accomplished a lot in my day because of all my busyness but I have not accomplished being fully in the moment.
If I want to start a life of noticing, of truly making time for moments and making openings for God to work within those moments, then I need to sit.
Because it is in the sitting where I make connections. It is in the sitting where I hear and learn who someone really is and what they are really saying. It is in the sitting where I give God the space to move and work and be made known.
I can’t do any of those things when I fill my every minute with tasks and to-dos. And I certainly cannot sense God’s presence and His movement when I don’t slow down.
Certainly God can move and work whether I sit down or not but our teamwork is greatly one sided when I don’t even notice His movement. Or when I move so rapidly through my day I don’t even allow Him room.
Sitting sounds good to me right now. A year full of sitting sounds really good. I know it will be tougher than it sounds. Choosing presence over busyness always is. But if sitting means getting to know my people and my God more fully, then in those moments where I feel the pull of busyness, I’ll need to remember the rewards of being still, of sitting with intention, are far greater.
So, here’s to a New Year full of sitting. First, I think I’ll try sitting down at my own kitchen table. I can’t wait to find out what I will discover there!
If you’re interested in learning more about the One Word movement, here is a website to give you more information: oneword365.com
You can also read this post over at Getting Real Ministries.
