2009: A Year of Prayer

For the past several weeks, the following phrase has been recurring in my thoughts: 2009 will be a year of prayer.

Certainly I feel challenged to increase the quantity of time spent in prayer (can any of us claim that we pray enough?), but more than the quantity of prayers, I'm challenged about the quality of my prayers. I'm feeling called to pray more boldly and specifically than ever before. I'll admit, that does not come easily or naturally to me. It's easy to pray generic prayers or prayers that require little faith. I think that subconsciously, the rationale is that if I don't expect much, then I won't be disappointed much if my prayers are not answered in the way that I would like them to be.

In other words, I can be a wimpy pray-er. And I don't want to wimp out any more.

Praying bold, specific prayers requires a lot of faith. I'll really be going out on a limb here. And sometimes I'm afraid of heights. So I can't exactly say that I'm overly eager to start ramping up the level of my prayers. But I know--I KNOW--that faith begets faith, and that the bigger my prayers are, the bigger the opportunity for my faith to stretch and grow in new ways.

Of course, I realize that not all of my prayers will be answered in the way that I desire. And yes, I will inevitably encounter disappointment and, perhaps, some discouragement along the way. But I really think it's time to leave my wimpy prayer life behind and really follow through on making 2009 a year of prayer. Anyone care to join me?

Random Bits about Me

I've been tagged by Amanda to share some little factoids about moi. Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them.
5. Let each person know they've been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up.

Here goes...
1. I am a reality TV-show junkie--sad but true. I avoid the truly stupid and degrading ones (mainly any that are on MTV or VH1) but I adore "Top Chef" and "Project Runway" and "The Amazing Race" in particular.

2. One of my dream jobs would be working in the White House as a speech writer. Might depend on the administration, though...

3. One of the best jobs I've had was working in the sports information office my last two years of college. Honing my PR skills while hanging out around hunky athletic men AND getting college credit for it? Can't beat that!

4. I've been pulled over for speeding twice but never gotten a speeding ticket. And both times I was traveling for work, go figure.

5. I actually like public speaking. Good thing since I was a communications major.

6. A few years ago I got to work in media relations for the Habitat for Humanity/Jimmy Carter Work Project. Saw President and Mrs. Carter up close and in person a few times. That is probably as close to any President as I'll ever come (unless that speechwriter job comes through...).

Now, I'm going to tag:
1. Melissa
2. Tara
3. Donna
4. Terri
5. Snapshot
6. Anyone else who wants to join the fun

Anticipation

I am amazed at the speed with which my dog can consume treats. Just today I was giving her some treats, and made the mistake of letting her see that I had more than one to give her. In her anticipation of getting multiple treats, she swallowed the first one whole. Luckily it was a small one, although it's still a wonder that she hasn't choked yet.

My dog was so eager to get her paws on that second treat that she completely missed out on the taste of the first. Of course, I felt God tapping me on the shoulder as if to say, "See? Runs in the family, doesn't it?"

I hate to admit it, but I often do the same thing. God desires to give me good things--treats--and yet I am so eager to get all I can that I miss out on enjoying them one at a time. There's no telling how many opportunities I've missed to "taste and see that the Lord is good".

Perhaps when I'm going through times that seem to be treat-less, God is teaching me to enjoy the good things He's already given me. Truthfully, I am blessed infinitely more than I deserve. Sometimes I need a reminder to stop and enjoy rather than anticipate the next good things to come along.

Goal Setting

Although Christmas is still a week away, I'm already thinking about the New Year. (It helps that I have pretty much all of my Christmas shopping done.) I've never been big on making New Year's resolutions; instead, I'm focusing on setting some concrete goals.

I'm a big dreamer with a great imagination, and I can spend all day dreaming up things to do over the next year. But if I never write them down and formulate a timetable and plan for them, odds are the dreams will remain in my imagination and never come to fruition. So while I have time off from work over the holidays, I plan to spend some time in prayerful planning for many areas of my life--health, finances, home, spiritual life, work, etc. Most likely I'll have to find a place to get away from the temptation of TV or computer--weather permitting, I'll go to a park (being outdoors inspires me), but I'll settle for a quiet corner at Starbucks or Village Coffee if the weather doesn't cooperate.

One of the keys to not only setting these goals but keeping them as well will be having someone hold me accountable. It helps to know that I've got friends who will ask me how I'm doing on my goal setting. So for my friends who read this blog, feel free to ask from time to time how my goals are coming along.

Of course, I can make plans all I want, but ultimately it is God who directs my steps. There will be some plans that I make that may fall through, and cause some disappointment. There will be some new goals and plans that God places on my heart mid-year, and some new developments that will be unexpected--some good, some bad. I know God has my best interests at heart, and nothing will happen that is not ultimately for His glory and my benefit. I'm trusting Him to guide me in this goal-setting process, and to grant me the grace to be flexible and handle whatever new plans come to light in '09.