If you are on social media at all, you have probably seen lots of posts about choosing your "word of the year" to focus on in 2020. People choose all kinds of creative words that represent their goals for the upcoming year, or what they feel is needed in their lives. My perfectionist self has always struggled with the idea of choosing a word to "define" me for the next 12 months. What if I choose the wrong word? What if I can't live up to my word? What if my life goes in a completely different direction? How do I put that word into action? The questions tumble in my mind and my anxiety mounts with the pressure of choosing just the "right" word. So, in the past, I have bucked the trend and simply continued setting specific, attainable goals for myself. I don't usually call them "resolutions," because, again, my perfectionism gets in the way and I feel so defeated if attaining them does not go as planned or if life throws me a curve ball that interferes with my goal. For instance, if I set an exercise goal and then come down with bronchitis and can't workout for a few weeks, I feel like a failure and have trouble giving myself grace in times of sickness. If I lay out routines and organization plans and miss a day, I am tempted to just give up because "I can't do this." Instead, I set small goals with reasonable expectations and celebrate when I achieve them.
However, this year every time I read about someone's word of the year, all I could think about was that I needed to simplify my life. The past year has been chaotic, stressful, and sometimes downright scary. We have had various medical issues, a few scares, and my seasonal anxiety issues have really ramped up. I have felt like I have been in survival mode for months, whereas I long to be in "thrive" mode. Life has felt overwhelming and out of control and, quite frankly, like a big mess! My brain has felt jumbled and stressed and unfocused. I have forgotten things simply because there is too much to remember and no good system to remember with!
So, I can feel my mind and my soul longing for simplicity. Every time I think of that, the Scripture admonishing us to "Be still, and know that I am God" comes to mind as well. I am rarely "still," and I get so caught up in all the urgent things that need to be done that sometimes I forget the most important things. I allow stress and chaos to dictate my life instead of peace, stillness, and trust.
Therefore, my word of 2020 is SIMPLIFY. My goal is to simplify and streamline my daily life so that I am able to finally "be still" and take comfort in the One who promises rest to all who are weary and heavy-laden if we will only come to Him in faithful obedience.
I am hoping to extend this word to all areas of my life.
SIMPLIFY the clutter in our home. Our brains function better and we are happier when material things are not constantly in our face vying for our attention.
SIMPLIFY routines and chores. It doesn't have to be all or nothing. It's okay to have a few routines in place to make the house run more smoothly and to give ourselves grace when we are exhausted and choose to leave dishes til the next morning in favor of sleep. It is okay if we forget to switch a load of laundry and have to run it again. It is not the end of the world if we forget to mop the kitchen this week.
SIMPLIFY Bible study. There is no need to feel obligated to be in all the studies going on around me and online. There is no need to commit to an impossible amount of reading each day and to feel frustrated that I can't keep up. So, I am focusing on one or two areas of study and doing them well instead of spreading myself so thin I can't even remember what I studied or grow from it.
SIMPLIFY our schedule. I am focusing on learning that it is okay to say no to something. I don't owe anyone an explanation, and it is okay to simply say "I'm sorry. My schedule doesn't allow for that." I can't be everything to everyone and still be what I need for my family. It's also okay to tell my children no, even to "good" activities if it keeps us rushing constantly and unable to enjoy each other. Every day doesn't have to be an elaborate special occasion. Some days we can just stay home and be still.
SIMPLIFY our finances. We don't have to buy everything we see that looks interesting. It's okay to set up autopay for recurring payments so that we don't forget.
SIMPLIFY my prayer life. It's easy to get caught up in feeling like prayer needs to sound a certain way or be a certain length. God simply desires that I communicate with Him. It doesn't have to be perfect or complicated.
SIMPLIFY relationships. Some relationships do not provide anything good, and it's okay to let those go. It's okay to let someone move on without constantly trying to fix it and force a relationship. It's okay to let people make bad choices without feeling like I have failed as a friend if I can't talk them out of it. I'm not advocating ignoring friends in time of need, but sometimes you just have to accept that someone has chosen to go in a different direction. It's okay to grieve a lost relationship and then move on. At the same time, it's okay to take time to cultivate strong relationships, especially with those who share my desire to go to heaven.
SIMPLIFY my health. This, too, can be a tempting area to be all or nothing and to set myself up for failure. So this year, instead of rigid goals and schedules and plans, I am going to simplify things to "making the best choices" and focusing on one thing at a time to make myself healthier.
SIMPLIFY my brain's chaos. It's okay to take time to rest, both physically and mentally. It is okay to ask my husband if I can go to the library for an hour to just have quiet alone time. It's okay to take time for myself to do something creative that I enjoy to re-energize myself. It's okay if my life doesn't look like someone else's. It's okay to simply "Be still, and know that I am God."
