This Time Next YearSample

When I was young, I had the opportunity to attend a leadership camp in the Chatahoochee Mountains of Georgia. One morning, we woke up early, drove miles into the wilderness, and hiked the mountains. We came upon an old graveyard and our leader talked about the DASH. The dash is what we see between the year someone was born & the year they died; the dash represents what they did with their life in between that day they entered the world and that day they died. I’ll never forget my camp leader sharing about the importance of the dash. The dash prompts us to ask, “How long did these people wait to really start living and making the most of the dreams, goals & gifts God had put inside them?” When I walked away from the graveyard that day, I was determined to seize the day—to live NOW. Every season, every year, every moment was valuable. I knew I needed a starting point—I have to intentionally begin living with this mindset NOW. It won’t be the easiest route to do always, but there are no shortcuts to any place worth going.

How do we really start living our best days?

As we kick off 2018, that question continues to come up in my mind. How do we really start living our best days? If we can raise our thinking, define our goals, master our mouth, and work hard with what we’ve got, then we will step into a new level of our best days in 2018. Every year is so valuable, and God has something special in store for each one. 

I know that 2018 is a marked year for all of us! God has so much more in store for our next steps, decisions, opportunities, and days ahead, and I feel it will be a year of ACCELERATION. When you look up the word acceleration, synonyms for this word you will find are: speeding up, quickening, advancement, furtherance, boost. God wants to quicken & boost His people in 2018 so that the Kingdom of God will advance!

A new year does not mean the former year was wasted. A new year does not mean that the former year was not valuable. God uses every season to bring forth a purpose, to work something in & out of us, and to set us up for the next season—the New Year. Everything you’ve formerly walked through & learned is a tool God has put on your belt in the next season. Some may say, “I’ve been ready for this next season— this New Year, a new job, a fresh start, a new beginning—for weeks, months, and maybe even all year!”

God’s promise isn’t that He will do a new thing; God’s promise is that He is DOING a new thing! Presently and currently, God is DOING a new thing in us, through us, and for His glory. 

Today, I encourage you to vision cast this New Year! Where do you want to be one year from now? What path do you want to be on? Who do you want by your side? Pick your PATH and pick your PEOPLE, and work hard with what you have in your hand to make 2018 the best year yet.

Click here to watch “Pick Your Path & Pick Your People” from Week 1 of “This Time Next Year” series