2016: Intentional Life

On January 1, 2015 I wrote this in my first blog post of the year:

"This year, I will fight against the excuses and the heart of waiting that so easily turns into the heart of postponing."

As I read it again this year doing my 2015 recap post, it struck a chord with me. I have shared on here that Alex and I are/were in a season of waiting. He was in school for radiology, but his ultimate goal was to get into physician assistant school. That was a 2+ year wait, and we can officially say that that wait is over. Alex got into PA school and officially accepted a seat (more about that during my next blog post- a little coffee date catch up). He'll be starting in June and I'm in my second semester of nurse practitioner school. 

Now that we're here, I've felt in my heart that now we're just waiting until we're both finished with school (our year of liberation is 2019, people!) I don't know about you, but I don't want to always be in a phase of waiting. 

How many sermons do we hear about waiting on the Lord or waiting for the right time? How often do we read about people that are in a waiting season? Don't get me wrong- I think there is such value to seasons in which the Lord makes us wait; I've seen it in my own life. But I also think that it's easy to get caught in this cycle of always waiting for something or another. And I don't think that's what the Lord has for us. 

I think that by waiting, we can miss a lot of the now. I've done this and still probably do it. How many things do you push off until you're married, or until you have a house, or until you have kids, or until you finish school? Of course there are certainly wise things to postpone during certain times of life, but I think this idea of waiting can quickly become a spirit of postponing. So that brings me to our word of the year. Alex and I prayed separately about this word and (not-coincidentally) came up with the same idea/word. 

INTENTIONAL 

We both feel like it's time to stop waiting for the next milestone to live. We're both in school and will be for the next few years, but we don't want to wait until we're finished to create community, give generously, or get involved in our community. It may be more challenging because of time and money constraints, but we refuse to put our lives on hold until Alex graduates in 2019. The idea that I had prayed about was life NOW. Alex put it more eloquently when the word brought to his heart was intentional. 

We want 2016 to be a year of intentionality- in our relationships, in our finances, and in our community. The verse we've chosen for this year is John 10:10...

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may HAVE LIFE and that they may have it more ABUNDANTLY. " (John 10:10, NKJV)

When Jesus said these words, I don't think He meant that we will have life abundantly only if we're married, or only if we're in a house or finished with school. I think He wanted us to know that He came for us so that we may have an abundant life now. Not in 5 years or when that certain thing happens, but now. 

So our challenge for ourselves in 2016 is to live life abundantly now. No more waiting, because that will be the rest of our life. We embrace this year as a year to build community, build relationships, and do well in our school and work. It all seems sort of vague to us now, but just like the Lord brought us opportunities to be generous last year, I think He'll show us what it means to live in the moment instead of always waiting. I pray the exact prayer that I prayed last year: That Alex and I will fight against the excuses and the heart of waiting that so easily turns into the heart of postponing. We pray that the Lord guides Alex and I to opportunities requiring intentional living, the wisdom to hear His direction, and the courage to follow the call.

What's your word or intention for 2016?? I would love to hear about it!