Begin to be and what that means…

Here we are midway through the first month of the new year and I am still very excited about my goals. I long to have a deeper relationship with God, to be all that God created me to be. My blog from a couple weeks ago reminds me that all I need to do is focus on what I want to be. I want to be with God! Mysteriously, God makes me a better person. There is a quote by Marianne Williamson that says, “I am better than I used to be. Better than I was yesterday. But hopefully not as good as I’ll be tomorrow.” Praise the Lord, God is not done with me yet! He’s not done with you either.

If you want to reach your goals this year, then review your goals daily. My list looks like this; 1. deepen my relationship with God, 2. become healthier, 3. become financially secure and debt-free. Along with my goals list, I write out action steps for each one. Reviewing the list and working the steps helps me stay focused. I also have an accountability partner that checks in on me. She helps me push forward because I know she is going to be asking. Do you want to accomplish your goals this year? Write them down, review them daily and find an accountability partner.

My accountability partner happens to be my friend. Recently, she rekindled her desire to lose a few pounds. I sent her a message that read, “Don’t quit! Recommit!” I can apply that same message to my goals. Recommitting my life to Christ every day helps me stay focused on my goal of going deeper with God. Staying focused on God helps me to begin to be.

Interestingly enough, that same friend chooses a word each year. It goes hand in hand with her goal setting. I’m always excited to hear her word. This year she’s been bouncing around from the word ‘clarify’, to ‘clarity’, to ‘become’. I love the word “become’. The definition is; “to begin to be”. It sounds new and fulfilling, like a fresh start. Have you ever thought about what it would mean ‘to begin to be’? When we deepen our relationship with God, we begin to be. God reveals who HE is and who HE is in us. We begin to be the people we were called to be.

Isaiah 43:18-19 says, “Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
 See, I am doing a new thing!”

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

As we grow into our relationship with God, we get a fresh start. We become that new thing that Isaiah talks about, a new creation in Christ Jesus. Make it your goal this year to begin to be all that God created you to be. Become the person God made you to be. Focus and recommit every day if that’s what it takes. God has so much in store for you. Go deeper with God. But know this, as far as you go with God, we can never get to the end of God or His love for us. There is always more God and there is always more love.

Let us pray: Father God, help me to become all that you have created me to be. Remind me that I no longer need to dwell on the past, that now I am a new creation in Christ Jesus. Give me the courage to begin to be all that you created me for. In Jesus Name, Amen. -M