God began to prepare my heart for this year’s “focus word” a few months ago. He planted in me a thirst to truly understand his promises in his word. I confess that I am certain that in my 30+ years as a believer in Christ, I have taken some of the bible verses relative to God’s promises out of context. God has now given me a strong desire to know the promises I can claim and stand firm on them!

So this year I am not focusing on one word as I have in the past. This year I am focusing on God’s promises. I am going to do the work and get to the bottom of God’s promises that I can claim today and stand firm upon amidst life’s storms.

The truth is this: I have grown significantly in the last several years in a variety of ways. Early in 2011, I even felt like God allowed a “break” or time of rest if you will, where he was going to give me a reprieve from facing the giants and allow me to rest and be at peace. Now as we begin 2013 I sense this time of rest is over. Already God is opening my eyes to giants that I have yet to face and giants that I didn’t even know where there. Despite the growth in my spiritual & emotional understanding of God and myself, I am painfully aware that vacation is over and its time to get back to work. And the work that needs to be done in this season is me, digging deep into God’s word, discovering his promises for me, memorizing them and meditating on them until my mind is renewed and my heart is secure.

We face uncertainty in our lives this year like we have never experienced. We have many unanswered questions and the temptation to give in to worry and anxiety and fear is greater for me than it has been in a very long time. I know the only solution is to stand firm on the true promises of God, and to really understand the meaning of the promises. I really want to get this right. I am desperate for God to lay this foundation in me, so that as we pass through storms we are not shaken, rather firmly rooted in the solid rock of his word.

So there you have it. I will focus on God’s Promises this year and as I come to a deeper understanding of these promises I will happily share them here on my blog. 🙂