Word for 2021-Promises

I'm not sure if it is a Christian thing but I've been starting to lean in and pray about what God's word for me for this upcoming year of 2021. Last year. during my first year of post grad, it was " hold me fast". And I thought of the song, he will hold me fast when my faith is failing .." but I think yes God was the one to hold me fast in my faith but I think in reflection, 2020 was a year of putting off my pride, my need to prove my worth, and being accepted by others and putting on God's love and grace and understanding the freedom in being in His very presence. He holds me fast not only to keep me in the faith but that he delights in me. He holds fast to me as his daughter whom He has predestined to adopt and love in Christ.

Upon entering 2021, with seems like another transition with physical therapy school, I just asked God what my word will be and last week and I got: Promises. What does that mean?! How does that even look? But I think it wasn't until today when He revealed something in my heart and confirmed through a bible study and other sources why His promises are so precious and something to dig into. It became an invitation to go deeper with him more than anything else.

So last night as we were sharing for DC ( small group), I think it was really cool to hear people's sharing and as they were sharing, something that stood out is their ability to connect God's word to their lives. And I mean it's something we do, but I think for me it is something that is hard to actively do that unless it profoundly hits me. Not like it's bad, but sometimes it's so easy to dig into the word of God in a way that it becomes very structured and very rigid. I just feel that deep, almost Ap English style, study is enough and forget to actually make time to meditate and pray after. I actually neglect that quite a bit. And I just had this realization ( revelation by the Spirit - Eph coming in clutch) , especially in light of going into Physical Therapy school and this new season, my goal shouldn't be going through as much as I can and lose sight of the real reason I pray and read, right? And so then I was like wondering and asking, why do I feel, especially in small groups, I need to share profound truths as if they were facts but in doing so detaching it from my life? And it's not like I'm doing consciously but when I was actually reading Piper's devotional book for Christmas called " The Dawning of Indestructible Joy" , it started with

John 5:44

" How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? "

And I went back to read the context and I was kind of hit in the gut with it,

John 5:39-40

"You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life."

I think the Holy Spirit showed that sometimes I tend to study the Bible with the end purpose of glory of others rather than coming to what the whole Bible is about- Jesus. I realized it's not an introspective issue or not knowing God's word, but being challenged in learning to stop and realizing the heart of God is not that I know the most or say the most profound thing before man, but it would be an avenue to come to know Jesus as my treasure!

God needed to reveal that about my heart in order to humble me, not in a condemning way, but by way of invitation into not only knowing him but to seek him with all my heart, mind, and soul and seek His glory alone. I think it's key actually in order to experience His promises right? Because it's one thing to know it as a fact that kind of floats in our mind, but it's when we can take that truth, pray and ask God for help to see it or meditate and connect it to our lives ( like when we can speak it over in times of unbelief or step into it confidently), we can by the Holy spirit's power, we can experience ALL of his promises. Super dope, but then I was wondering how this would even look. What does it even mean to step into some of his promises? And then that's when God used another study, :" The Armor of God " by Priscilla Shirer, that just the girls of my DC group have been going through. And we were on the topic of inheritance and in it was a list of 55 different promises of our inheritance, and I was like perfect, one promise to meditate and pray through each week of this year!! That worked out perfectly! And one of the inherited promises we have is actually receiving great and precious promises by God in 2 Peter.

2 Peter 1: 3-8

"His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

It's so good, I was like yes the word is promise and the theme verse is 2 Peter! But I think what was crazy, to tie everything together is this verse is not only about promises but in the last verse it says, "For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ".

Like that's mind blowing right? God revealed to me how easy it is to gain more and more knowledge, but if it is for the purpose to gain this almost empty filling-glory from man is temporary but it also renders our faith to be ineffective and unfruitful. And it's not to say that what you say and what you do, even for your own glory won't and can't be used by God. But how much more can God use us when our hearts and our desires are set upon Jesus! So I feel like what I sense God pushing me to, again by way of invitation to go deeper with him, is to not just read and gain knowledge but it's to actually sit at the feet of Jesus and hear his voice being louder than those that try to tear my attention away- the voice of needing to be pleasing others, the voice of anxiety of being consumed by school, the voice of wanting a relationship. God is greater and not only is he greater, He is better. And I think sitting and seeing how God will use this year to make his promise known and real, I think and I hope and pray that at the end of day, it will help me see him as treasure. Not that Jesus wasn't treasure before, but that my eyes may be enlightened to see the reality of it ( Eph 1:18).

"You don't have to be more than you are to be useful to God. You just have to be a person who loves Jesus and loves people." -Jackie Hill Perry

And found this quote today too which really sums up the goal I think in resting, experiencing, and trusting God's promise. It's not for me to make much of myself through the praise of man, but that God would shape and form my heart to be a lover of himself and of people and from there be used for his glory. I don't want to just look the part, I want to be the part; everything I say, I want to know it is true and genuine.

Crazy how each of these revelations and sources came in specific steps and all make sense- the Holy Spirit definitely wrote this blog. All glory to God and pray that this year would be the beginning of relying on his promises forever and ever. Amen.