On the Seventh Day of Christmas: A New Year and a New Word

Each year for the past several I've prayed and thought about what my focus for the new year will be. This year as I was thinking about it, the following word popped into my head along with a scripture. Over the past couple of months it has occurred a number of times. One night I woke up from a sound sleep with the scripture running through my head. The other morning, the word popped into my head again. 

So I think it's pretty clear what my word for 2019, along with my theme verse should be. And it's something that I do see as needing improvement in my life. 

Diligence: careful and persistent work or effort

2 Timothy 2:15 - Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.

I usually work hard, but not so diligently or persistently. I especially feel the necessity of doing this spiritually as I prepare for consecration. My oral examination will be taking place in October, and a few weeks before that is an 8 hour written exam. I can't just go in and "wing it." And yet, I get sidetracked on a regular basis. 

Diligence is something that I've never been very good at. And I have found that the internet has made me very lazy when it comes to memorizing scripture. When I'm trying to find a passage for something, it's been easier to just google it instead of taking the time to seek it out myself.  

I want to be diligent with every area in my life, but more importantly, in how I handle God's word. I don't want to just haphazardly study for my upcoming exams, but I want to be diligent in knowing the scriptures. I want to be able to memorize and recall those passages that will be needed as I minister to others. 

In 2019 I want to apply diligence to all I do, but especially in this area. Some of that will mean being much more disciplined in how I handle my online time. It will also mean doing a better job of discipling my activity time and scheduling things. I tend to get so engrossed in an activity such as sewing that I can spend hours doing that to the detriment of all else. I need to schedule my time and allot a certain amount of time to each activity. Diligence!

I'm looking forward to developing this in the coming year.