Last night, I brought cake up to my bed at 10:15 pm because, hey, those leftover Christmas goodies aren’t just going to eat themselves up, are they? Someone had to clean out the fridge. So I volunteered myself. It was in the line of duty.

The night before the unused potato chips from our New Year’s Eve get-together called for attention. And I’m not one to ignore plaintive salt-and-vinegar cries, crunches, or crumbles.

I didn’t need to recruit my kids or the hubbers. This was a one-woman job. And I happened to be at the right place at the right time to do the job marvelously well. Happy new year’s to me!

Okay here’s the whole truth: it’s the first week of the new year and I’m already disappointed.

Mainly, I’m disappointed in myself.

(Tell me I’m not the only one feeling this way. Anyone else? Do I hear an “Amen”?)

But before you or I beat ourselves up because we’ve essentially had amnesia about new year goals, here’s a little something that God impressed on my heart that might encourage you, too.

Even before 2022 rolled around, my inbox was spilling over with emails from health coaches, life gurus, Christian influencers, and productivity pundits.

The message was clear.

There was “one way” I could “hack this new year.”

Oh, wait. Scratch that. There were actually “three simple steps.”

Actually, nope, all it took was “two words that could transform” my 2022.

One email announced a productivity seminar that would guarantee I crushed my goals, while still another sold me a calendar that claimed to be all I would ever need to organize my life (Would it also clean my kitchen cabinets and put away my Christmas decorations, pretty please?)

Also, turns out, there are approximately 13 “one” ways to get fit this year (One email announced I would lose 65 lbs this year if I followed the coach’s plan. Er – if I lost 65 lbs I would weigh about the same as a heavyset Chihuahua. But maybe that’s the perfect weight for a grown woman in 2022. Just saying.).

While I deleted some emails and marked some to follow-up on in the new year, the information overload left me exhausted and overwhelmed.

How was I supposed to drink eight glasses of water, remember my breathing exercises, walk 10K steps a day, be inspired creatively, take time out for myself but also never multi-task, eat a rainbow of vegetables, and work without interruptions (But, hello, remember those eight glasses of water?? No interruptions, they say. Ha!).

But in that moment where I felt overwhelmed by all that I had to do to live my “best life,” God whispered in my heart that He hasn’t called me to strive but to seek.

He hasn’t asked you or me to strive to be a “better” person but to seek His face, His kingdom, and His righteousness.

Striving can often lead to frustration (“Uuuggh, why did I eat that extra piece of cake?”) and sometimes to a sense of failure (“I never do anything right!”) but seeking the Lord leads us to a place of fulfillment.

The fulness that God gives us when we seek Him with all our hearts seeps into every part of our lives. It’s no longer just about mere productivity which we can measure but about fruitfulness which is not always measurable but imminently more valuable.

As 2021 wrapped up, I prayed for a “word” for the new year that would anchor the coming months (Considering my amnesia about goals, I figure one word is sticks far better than a set of resolutions). The word that kept popping into my mind was “undivided” and the verse that went with it was from Psalm 86: 11

“Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name.”

This is my prayer for you too as you start this new year: That you would seek God with an undivided heart.

We are not called to settle because we fear the future. Neither are we instructed to strive because we want to control the future (another form of fear).

God accepts and loves us just as we are, just where we are. But He loves us too much to leave us that way.

So, instead of settling or striving, we seek Him first. And, as Scripture says, “All these things shall be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

Wishing you a blessed 2022. A year of seeking God with an undivided heart.

 

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