Three Things To Do Differently in 2017
In just the first week that we have been in the year 2017, I’ve walked past fitness centers, churches, and juice bars that seem to be a lot more crowded than they were the last week of 2016. On social media I’ve also encountered numerous empowering slogans accompanied by elaborate vision boards. Everyone is looking to start the New Year off as a new person, but what exactly does that entail?
My New Year resolution was not to have one. As I reflected on the vision board I had created last year, I realized that though I had accomplished most of what I had set out to do, one key detail was lacking; a detail that escapes many of us in our pursuit of change: you cannot pour “new wine into old wineskins. For the wine would burst the wineskins, and the wine and the skins would both be lost. New wine calls for new wineskins” (Mark 2:22 NLT).
In this scripture, “new wine” refers to wine that is in the process of fermenting. As it ferments, it expands. If the ancient Israelites were to pour new wine into an old wineskin, it would burst because it wouldn’t have the flexibility that a new wine skin would have. Are you seeing the connection here? Sisters, you cannot be a new me with an old you. God cannot pour the fullest measure of His promises into us if we are not willing to transform our minds and hearts. We have to become new if we want to receive something new.
On that simple premise alone, I’ve decided to commit to living my life differently in 2017. Below, I’ve outlined a list of the top three changes that I would love for you to consider making with me:
1. A New Mindset Is Everything
“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
According to this scripture, in order to have a new you, you must first have a new mind! Everything that your body does is a response to what the brain commands it to do, right? Likewise, in the spiritual sense, your mind is what dictates the choices you make. For instance, if you haven’t changed your mindset about food and health, your weight will not change no matter how much you work out. In the same way, no matter how much you declare that with the New Year came a new you, if you haven’t allowed God’s transformative power to take root in you, you’ll find yourself falling into old habits time and time again.
Will you face setbacks? Of course!
Will you get discouraged? Absolutely!
Will you fail? Yes!
But it is through those set backs, discouragements, and failures that we discover how strong the Spirit of God inside of us really is. Fear of failure holds a lot of us back from true transformation, but I believe 2017 will be the year of dreams being fulfilled for many of us. As we’re told in James 1, we just have to believe. Ask God to help your unbelief.
2. Let “It” Go
Many of us believe have forgiven ourselves for past mistakes, but we still hold onto the memory of our sin as a badge of honor to be worn for all eternity. Let it go. When we hold onto past hurts, defeats or poisonous people, we are giving ourselves permission to live continually broken. You cannot produce anything that will flourish and have longevity if it’s broken. Just like new wine cannot effectively be held in old wineskins, God’s transformation cannot take root in damaged soil.
King David had known sin. He had sinned against God, he had sinned against Uriah the Hittite, and he had sinned against himself. 2 Samuel 11 documents what happened, if you want to read more, but Psalm 51 is where we get to see David’s heart in the matter. With the understanding that only God has the power to work on the inner man to clean and make new, David prayed this prayer:
“Make a clean heart in me, O God. Give me a new spirit that will not be moved”
God freely forgives us when we go to Him in earnest prayer, and even though David’s sin was great, he believed this. In our own lives we can continue to hold onto what God has already thrown into the sea of forgetfulness (Micah 7:18-19) or we can move forward, learn our lesson, and accept God’s cultivation, bringing forth a new heart and mind.
3. Make Me New
New
adjective
“Not existing before; made, introduced, or discovered recently or now for the first time.”
In order to carry to fruition God’s purpose in our lives, many of us have to be emptied, completely. My prayer for my life this year was to be made new; therefore, my success hinges on my total availability to the Spirit and will of God. Looking back over my life, I can see the difference between the seasons where I have been captain of my life and when God has. I cannot live 2017 the way I did 2016.
At the end of each year I go to my primary doctor for my annual physical, where I’m given a head-to-toe assessment to make sure each part of my body is functioning within its normal range. Because we’ve built a solid doctor-patient relationship over the years, she is able to detect when something is off and takes the necessary steps to ensure I stay physically healthy.
How many of us sit before God before the New Year seeking a spirit check? Ask yourself this question: am I spiritually healthy and thriving or am I a dead vessel in need of God’s breath of life in my inner man? God wants to do something new in 2017. I feel it in my spirit. And where He wants to take you, your old inner man will not be able to comprehend, let alone facilitate. We know all the scripture verses, now it’s time for us to live it. It’s time to walk in newness of life. Our butterfly season is now!
Introspection Time
Instead of challenging you to create a vision board, I challenge you to sit before God and do a serious introspection of where you stand with Him. Give Him space to speak to you and then write down His vision for your life so that you can make the necessary adjustments to walk in your calling. Let this be the year that we stop adjusting God’s will to fit our own.
One thing I know for sure is that His plans will always exceed anything we could ever imagine, so stop viewing your single season as a pit stop that you’re just passing through until your “Boaz” arrives. Married or not, there are valuable lessons in the wait. Your waiting has nothing to do with getting over to the other side; it has everything to do with you going through what ever it is God has in store for you to experience.
Thank you for taking this journey with me. Waiting in Heels is 1-year-old this month, and I am amazed by how God has stretched and pruned me over the past year. If you are new, I always end my blogs with journal questions that you can answer on your own time, as a way to reflect and draw nearer to God. If you have any prayer requests or questions for Waiting in Heels, please forward them to info@waitinginheels.com.
Stay blessed and fabulous!
Your sister in Waiting,
Danisha
Journal Questions:
1. In what ways have you carried your old mindset into 2017? What ways do you plan to change?
2. If you haven’t already, do a spirit check with God. This can be facilitated with worship music, journaling, reading scripture, and just talking to God. What has God revealed to you about your relationship with Him? What visions for your life has He showed you for 2017?
3. What is the “it” you still need to let go of? What steps can you start taking to forgive yourself and let it go?
Recommendations:
Books:
Praying Through It: 365 Days Worth of Prayers That Make Praying Easy by William Murphy