A calendar gives us order, but the moments that make up the days on the calendar make up our lives. By the grace and goodness of God, we turn the page to a new year and ask Him to fill those days with His will. In line with that, my "word" for 2024 is "with" - "God with us" - giving me the motivation and love to be WITH His family as I live out the "one anothers" and to be WITH the hurting and broken to lead them to the Healer and Savior.

To be in God's will, He must be in me. He must be WITH me. "Immanuel" is the Father's declaration of His place and character in the heart that follows hard after Jesus. He is the Source of all that we need to serve, honor, obey, love, and share Him with the bruised and hurting world. He is the Source of all that we need to encourage our brothers and sister in Christ as we journey toward our Heavenly Home.

What are those needs? They're the more than 50 "one anothers" peppered throughout the New Testament. They're God's clear instruction on how to do life with our Christian family. To live them out will require more than a prayer (although that's a good thing), a quick text (although that's a good thing) or a passing greeting (although that's also a good thing). To live out the "one anothers," I must commit to being WITH the family. "God with us" empowers us to:

*love

*be devoted

*honor

*live in harmony

*accept

*pray

*serve

*be patient, kind, and compassionate

*encourage

*carry others' burdens

...and a whole list of actions provided by the Lord to nurture, strengthen, and support our brothers and sisters.

I must commit to being WITH people to live out God's heart for this broken, lost world. And HE must supernaturally do the empowering because this introvert is naturally inclined to love my homebody life, my peace and quiet, and my neat, orderly space. GOD must stir in my soul a desire for me to be so overcome by His love that I toss aside MY will for HIS will - to seek and save the lost.  And I can't do that from the couch. I need to be WITH people.

There's a lot of potential for growth on my part! I'm grateful for the presence of many in my life who model living out the "one anothers" so well. I'm grateful for those who exemplify the love of Jesus in their passion to share the good news of His saving grace with the lost. I'm grateful to Him - Who chose to be WITH me by leaving the glory of heaven, walking out a perfect life that He willingly sacrificed to pay the penalty for my sin, being raised to life in victory over death, and promising to carry me Home for eternity with Him.

So the page has turned, and the first day of 2024 is fresh and ripe with hope and promise - as will be each new day given by God as grace. I pray that I - and you - will fill those days with His will as He dwells WITH us.

Matthew 1:22 - "All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel (which means "God with us").'"

Would love to hear about your journey if you've chosen to select a theme word for 2024.