The clock is ticking, and this year will soon be done. I don’t know about you, but I am always filled with serious thoughts on December 31, each year seems to be the same. What did I accomplish in the past year? What goals will I revisit in the new year? What adventures are waiting for me as I wander through another calendar year?

This year, I am teetering between two worlds… the world of work, as I know it now, and the world of possibilities should I get the pink slip in a few weeks. With that pink slip will be a window opening with so many new adventures just waiting for the time to blossom. Is that a positive spin, or what?

Along with this anticipation, though, comes the fear of the unknown. Since I was 18, I have hardly ever been without a job for any significant amount of time. That’s almost 35 years of working for other people. While in my teaching career, I also usually held some sort of additional employment, or took in sewing jobs to help make my ends meet, though not much wiggle room. Of course, I have also been part of MANY multi-level marketing deals, selling everything from make-up to Christmas ornaments, and everything in between.

What is your adventure as  you see it in the new year? Are you looking for adventure intentionally? or just waiting to see what life has in store for you? I used to tell my students that they needed to be intentional about their actions and plans, to be strong like the Orca. The alternative is having the actions of the jelly  fish, without a skeletal system and completely at the mercy of the waves to move it around.

Why wouldn’t we be intentional? I have met some people who have given up on planning, as life has been hard and they have not seen much success in work and/or relationships. I heard this described once as “learned helplessness.” What do you think about that? Sometimes it seems like a more comfortable route, to just allow life to move you around rather than putting much effort into planning and then executing the plan. Life is hard. Agree?

And then there is trust… trust in the One who already sees the future, who knows what “adventures” we are going to encounter this next year, and is already giving us the strength and grace to meet these challenges. But, we aren’t robots. He doesn’t “make us” handle these situations one way or another. So what is it going to be? Should we meet these challenges and adventures with strength and trust? Or should we just wait and see what happens?

I don’t know about you, but I am putting on my boots, grabbing the sides, and pulling them up square. Time to look these new adventures in the eye! I’ll pray for you if you will pray for me!

Send me a message. Let me know what adventures you are coming up against and how I can pray for you.

Happy New Year!