I recently received my iBloom Planner for 2017. This planner makes my life so much easier and it helps me be intentional and focused on what I need to accomplish. Not only does it help me keep track of appointments and important dates for the year, there are also many other sections of the planner that ask specific questions to help you have a plan in place for the year.  Imagine that, a planner that actually helps you write a plan for your life and/or your business. Best investment ever.

One of the sections in the planner, ask what is your Theme for the year. The planner is designed with Christian women in mind who are in Business but want to have a satisfying life to love as well.

So along with the many things in this planner, there is also scripture and reminders to seek out the Lord and to pray.  I absolutely love it!

The problem I have been having is I just don’t have one theme word for the year. I have multiple themes that I believe intertwined together would be children of a parent theme. I just haven’t decided what that parent theme should be. My children themes are Declutter, Organize, Love, Laugh, Give.  I am thinking the one word to pull it all together might just be, Simplify,  maybe.

This verse from the Book of Psalm 51, Verse 10 has been popping up all over the place in my readings lately, so I am pretty sure God is trying to tell me something.

Psalm 51:10King James Version (KJV)

¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

I realize that this verse is speaking about having a pure heart and the Lord’s spirit upon my life and my body so that I can share the gospel of salvation with sinners and they will return to the Lord.  This verse may not be talking about decluttering or organizing a space, but I know sometimes it is easy for our hearts and minds to become cluttered with a bunch of information that is not only NOT useful but sometimes can be damaging and toxic to the soul.

There are many verses in the Holy Bible on Love. I believe verses 34 and 35 from the Book of John, Chapter 13, sum up how we should show love to others.

John 13:34-35 NLT

So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

 

Each day when I wake up, I pray and ask the Lord to give me His eyes so I can see others as he does. I want to love others as he did. I want people to know how much I love Jesus and how he has changed me into the person I am, from where I was before. There are days I struggle to be loving like Jesus; thank goodness, he is willing to give me a second chance and offers grace.

The Lord forgives our sins and they are forgotten forever. Never to be brought up again. Never to be hung over your head and thrown in your face when you get something wrong or don’t quite measure up to people and their expectations. His grace and mercy are showered upon us daily; shouldn’t’ we do the same?

Luke 6:37-38 NIV

37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged.  Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

 

I want to be able to give to others in need as they have given to me when I have needed it, no strings attached. I want to give with a loving heart not because I should or because it’s the right thing to do, but because I want to show them the love of Jesus in a practical way. And most importantly, I do not want to condemn anyone, regardless of their actions. I have no idea what kind of battle other people face and I have enough “battles” of my own, I certainly don’t need to be picking more.  I can tell you about the good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over because that has been poured into my lap and my family many times. The Lord provided. What an amazing awesome God I serve!

As I learn to declutter my home, my life, and my heart, I pray God will show me areas that I need to organize or set apart more or less than they are now. I know that I need to invest more time in certain relationships and I need to let others go. I need to remember to laugh thru the struggles and love even when I don’t feel like being loving. I need to give with a cheerful heart because that is the only way you truly give of yourself, your time or your talents. If you are not happy in the giving, then you must step back and examine your heart and your motives.

2 Corinthians 9:7NLT

7 You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.

 

I  am excited to see where 2017 takes me and I am also excited to see if at the end of the year, I lived out my theme or were they merely words jotted down in a pretty planner.

Having a vision for your life, helps you to stay on task and stay focused. Visions may change as you grown, but don’t sell yourself short. God allows desires in your heart for a reason, trust Him to get you through them.

Blessings to you. Jesus loves you, right where you are!

~Carlene