Borrowed Blog Entry: Non-Resolutions by Jeanne Damoff

Pleasing God is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. We are, after all, parts of a body, and even individual parts may function in more than one capacity. So, I come to this new year not knowing specifically what my moments will hold, but resolved to heed what the Head has revealed regarding His general desire. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it’s my starting place. In 2009, I resolve:

To believe what God has said about Himself. He is enthroned in the heavens, working out His will with perfect faithfulness. Nothing is too difficult for Him. He opens doors that no man can shut, and shuts doors that no man can open. He does according to His will in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and no one can stay His hand. He holds me in the palm of His hand, and hides me under the shadow of His wing. He knows my thoughts before I think them, my words before I speak (or write) them, and the number of hairs on my head. He will never leave me or forsake me. Ever.

To live aware. I want to practice presence–not to be constantly looking back or forward, but living in the now, truly seeing and hearing the people God places in my life and loving them well, sharing their burdens through action and intercession.

To embrace beauty. I will not ignore pain, suffering, and the darkness all around me, but I will not be defined by it nor let it rob me of the profound and simple beauties that are everywhere. I will let beauty break my heart in the best way and then pour its essence into my art.

To be grateful. Life is not fair. And thank God it isn’t. If it were, we would all be burning in hell, separated for eternity from God. As it is, He has redeemed us and lavishes His love upon us. I resolve to receive every gift (the lovely, the difficult, the painful, the exquisite) with gratitude toward the One who shapes them for me. I will hold tightly to His hand, trust His will, lean on His grace, and–by His mercies–present my body daily to Him as a living sacrifice.

I will make Micah 6:8 my standard for success.
“He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you. But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?”

What I do with my moments is what I do with my life. By God’s grace, I will worship with my moments, whatever that looks like on any given day. And I will give others grace to do the same, even when I don’t understand.