As 2023 comes to a close, I want to reflect on the good, the bad, and everything in between. Things that have kept me afloat this year have been all God. My church, the changes we have made and the growth we have shown, the women’s Bible studies, the influx of new people coming to worship with us….all of those people have encouraged me when I was low, shown me grace when I didn’t deserve it, and lifted me up in prayer when I needed it most. I’ve learned to love differently, and I’m still learning.
The things that have held me back have been mostly things of me. I know my faults and want to address and overcome them in 2024, so that I can really do my part in the Commission that the Lord has on my soul. Proverbs 12:18 says “There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.” Ephesians 4:29-32 says “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.”
And there you have it, folks. Every time I read those scriptures (and they seem to be present almost any time I’m in the Word), I am convicted all over the place. Someone makes me mad? I have a lot to say about that. I have a tendency to spout things off out of anger. Once it’s out there, there is no taking it back. Just because it’s true doesn’t make it ok to broadcast it. Being honest is irrelevant when the spirit in which it’s delivered is not the Holy Spirit. Accepting part of Christ and not ALL of Him won’t do. He is love even to the unlovable.
Aside from the normal getting healthy resolution this year, I want to make a new resolution. One that will help me stick to every other resolution I make. I want to be closer to the Lord in every way. I want to think of Him first in every situation. I want to consider His judgement when circumstances arise that would normally infuriate me. I want to learn the law of wisdom and kindness in my speech. Each year I strive to check off points of the Proverbial Woman. This year I want to check off Proverbs 10:26 “She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness.” The only way to do that is to spend more time with God and less time with the world.
The world brings forth the ugly in people (even Christians), but the presence of God brings forth light. 1 John 1:5-7 “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” I have so much remorse for things I say in anger. My actions in anger are dark and there is not light in those actions and words. I strive to bring light back into dark situations. That would be humbling—for myself and for anyone else involved. I know what people expect of me as far as my reactions go, bc it’s all they have ever seen. As I grow in Christ I want to let those things go and be the person I am meant to be reacting in the way that reflects Jesus the most.