New Year's Resolutions

I always love to look out upon the shiny new year ahead of me by reminding myself of where I've just been, and then prayerfully moving forward into all that newness, anticipating good things from a good God.

As I flipped through my journal, I came across two entries that caught my eye.

Journal entries from 2015:

1/15/15  "I think that there have been two things that have made this year [2014] hard - #1 - hands down, the lack of sleep!"...

10/22/15  "I am healing - emotionally, physically, and spiritually from a season of extreme demands on me.  The four years of seminary, living on campus, were four years of adventure, excitement, new, growth, busy, hard, painful, pruning, no sleep, crazy busy, new baby, kid sicknesses, emotions, kid quarrels, learning to live with a lot of people in a small space - both inside the apartment and outside… I didn't realize just how depleted I was from exerting all that time and energy into raising a family in seminary until now - I feel like I am blooming - I feel more happy and peaceful inside - less anxious, and I told Ken yesterday - God knew I needed a Gap Year - before we whisked off to the next adventure.  I just needed some rest, consistency, down time - to recuperate, get filled back up, have margins in my life…I am finite, and I was pushing myself to the absolute limit these last four years."

I am calling Sept 2015 - August 2016 my Gap Year.  (At a Mom's Night recently, some of the moms with kids older than mine were discussing how one of their kids had a Gap Year in which they went on an overseas mission before starting college, and a another one's kid was thinking about taking a Gap Year.  That's when it dawned on me that I was having a Gap Year!  God knew I needed it, and He provided it.  Also, when I call it that, it reminds me to slow down, to rest, to not add to my plate but instead use extra time I have to take a chill pill and chill.)

And that was on my mind when I sat down to think about New Year's Resolutions.  I hold these resolutions lightly - more as goals that I will conscientiously work towards - not binding myself in such a way as to heave guilt upon my shoulders if I don't retain them all throughout the year.

1.  Read through the entire Bible.
2.  Read through R.C. Sproul's book, "Essential Truths of the Christian Faith".
3.  Exercise regularly.  ( I don't want my body to fall apart now that I am over 40!)
4.  Begin to add to my Spanish vocabulary.
5.  Continue to rest and recuperate from many years of being worn down.

I think sharing these resolutions/goals with you is helpful for me.  It helps me be more conscientious about pursuing them, and it adds a little bit of accountability.  Ask me later how I am doing on them!  :)

Some odds and ends:

-Ken invited me and the big kids to join him in reading through the Bible in one year chronologically.  I think that is going to be really motivating to have several family members on board with that.  We can cheer each other on!  Here's the Plan we're using.

-During these last years, I feel that I was so busy raising a family in seminary that I have gotten a little rusty in knowing and being able to communicate Christian doctrines.  I feel that it is a need of mine to review the basics, and that's why I want to read R.C. Sproul's book.

-Being "done" with seminary (I say "done" because we aren't officially done until Ken turns in his thesis.), but not moving on to ministry, being in a temporary situation and even living in a temporary rental house, gives me an opportunity rest.  We're not launching into something new.  We're just here for now.  Rest, Liz!  :)

-This whole "Gap Year" idea is how I'm thinking about life right now.  The rest of the Cecil Seven aren't experiencing life like this.  Ken is still charging ahead full steam working 9-5 each day at the office, and using his spare time working on his thesis.  After four years of seminary, he is still straining all his brain muscles on a daily basis for the good of the family and to wrap up his seminary career.  Please continue praying for him!  As far as the kids go, they are just walking down the hallowed halls of learning each day, and strolling through the glorious years of childhood one beautiful day after the other.  No Gap Year needed for the kids in our family!

~~~
Addition:
If you have never taken a look at the sidebar and noticed the Missionary Blogs that I enjoy reading, take a minute to check out today's article in A Life Overseas.  I just did, and realized I am not the only one thinking about rest today.  For those of you who are tired from too much work, worn out from loving your little ones 24/7, catch a breath of fresh air, and read about how healthy and important it is for you to Rest. To Love.