Most years during the waiting of Advent I quietly pray, Lord… is there one word for the new year? Sometimes it feels like a loaded question. A harbinger of what the new year has in store for me.
If I’m left to my own devices I’ll choose words like grace, love, or joy. Words that spark a feeling of giddy anticipation with all the good vibes. Who doesn’t like a feel good word that points to a struggle free year.
Some years I make a list. Other times I throw the prayer up without much intention, and a word comes to me. One of my friend says, “We don’t choose… the word chooses us.” I like the thought of it.
But words without The Word don’t have much use. There’s no life in an arrangement of letters unless God inspires it. So I wait. I pay attention. I listen to see if an answer to my one word prayer comes.
Every year since the beginning of this spiritual practice, a word sort of floats to the surface. An invitation to go deeper and embrace the forming and re-forming work God is doing in me. This year’s word feels more like an old friend. One I’ve contemplated since my twenty-something self found this scripture.
I remember my reaction clearly, and the question that immediately became my prayer that day.
How do I delight myself in the Lord? What does that even mean?
At the time I didn’t see any delight in my relationship with God. Because I knew me. And every single day ended with never getting it right. At least in my own eyes. I was an expert at keeping a list of my sin and the list was long. So long I couldn’t see how Love would even care to know me. I had this broken idea that faith was all about following the letter of the law and for me, delight didn’t compute.
It’s been several decades since I prayed that prayer. I’m not the same as I was then. I live in a different place and work a different job. There are no tiny feet running down the hallway or teens slamming doors. I don’t keep a sin list or any list at all most of the time.
This year’s word feels like coming around the bend to something familiar. Yet, I can’t quite put my finger on it. A full circle word pointing me to who I was… who I am now… who I will become. I hear the same question rising from my heart, How do I delight myself in the Lord?
I have more of an answer than I used to.
I believe I’ll discover even more this year.
Are you feeling inspired to choose a word too? Or… let a word choose you? There’s nothing magical about it, but there is something transformational in allowing God to use one word as a focus for your growth this year.
Through it all may the one word you discover lead you to The Word.
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