2014: LISTEN

Happy 2014 Everyone!!  I have not been nearly as diligent in blogging as I have wanted to be this year.  And even several times I have thought about saying goodbye.  But somehow this space just feels like home to me, and I am not ready to let it go.  I just have so much to tell you!!!!!  Here is the first thing...

I couldn't wait to share my WORD for 2014 with you.  Im sure you have seen all the hype of the Word of The Year.  If not, you can visit here for all the details.  This will be my 5th year participating, and I can tell you it is life changing folks!!  Here are my previous years' words:

Intentional

Gratitude

Growth

Grace

Each year I have been completely transformed by these words, so I have to keep it up.  It is amazing to me to look back and see all the Lord has done in my life through this one tradition.  So here is my word for 2014...

This year I want to LISTEN yall.  

I want to really LISTEN.  

I don't want to just hear.  No, I want to hear and LISTEN.

Listen first to God and the Holy Spirit living inside of me.    But how if I'm doing all the talking?  Jesus tells us in John 10:27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."   Have mercy.   I think alot of times I do HEAR Him, but I don't LISTEN to Him.  There is a difference.  I hear Him, but I have already committed to what He is urging me not to do, or I really want to do something else, or I am lazy, or I am selfish, or I am angry, or I am scared.  Oh, I hear Him allright.  I just don't listen.  This year I want to LISTEN to Him.  I want Him to say, "Kellye hears my voice, and she knows Me, and I know her and she follows Me."

credit

Secondly, I want to listen to my husband.  I have such a hard time with this one because 2 of my biggest faults is that I am a control freak, and I may or may not always sometimes think I am always right.  Terrible, I know.  And the worst part is that the truth is I have control over NOTHING (why can't I just understand that?) and my husband is usually the one I end up admitting my wrong-ness to.  He is not perfect, but his perspective and his filters are more clear and heavenward than mine are.  He does alot of listening (when nobody else is).  He has a big picture mindset, while I tend to be stuck right where I am.  On google maps he is the bird's eye view guy, and me, well,  I am all about the street view!  But how about when you are on street view you CANT SEE ANYTHING!!!!  Wow!!  That is powerful when you think about it!!  I want to listen to this man.  Seek his guidance.  He is a wise man that the Lord has ordained over our family.   He always tells me, "You're mouth is doing this (insert the pac man hand of a talking mouth), when you need to be doing this (insert pac man hand CLOSED)."  I told you he is a wise fella!!  And he is a cutie to boot!!  Goodness I love him more than words!!!!

Thirdly, I want to listen to my children.  My girls are getting older, which means that the idea that I am just going to tell them what to do, and they will respond like robots is just fading fast.  As it should.  I want them to think for themselves.  And instead of being a tyrant, I want to be a shepherd.  I want them to know that I understand, that I am listening, that they can trust me, and that I hear them.  Because we homeschool, we are together all. the. time.  This is a tremendous blessing, but a huge responsibility.  The responsibility falls on me to capture these days, and make them mean something.   The day is coming, sooner than I would like to think, that all I will have is memories of these days.  I want to make sure I am taking every single opportunity to point them to Christ, find teachable moments, and make memories with these girls who are so precious to me.  Once a friend told me of a lady whom she adored who once told her that children are the only earthly possessions you can take with you to heaven.  Wow!!!  Did you hear that?  Let me repeat it again, in case you are just skimming.

 Children are your only earthly possessions 

you can take with you to heaven.

I want you to hear that, but not just hear it, to listen to it.  Seriously.  Our children are the only earthly possessions we can take with us to heaven.  That is something worth listening to!!!!  I mean write that down and tape it to your mirror for crying out loud!

Lord, please give me the wisdom to listen to these girls, meet them where they are, and point them to you!!  They are my only earthly possessions I can take with me to heaven.

In all this listening, I think I am going to be a very busy girl.  

In order to keep my focus, here are some things that I won't be listening to this year.

• that smarmy voice inside my head that tells me I am not enough.

• others who offer advice that goes against what I know to be true.

• homeschool families that convince me (unknowingly) that I need to do exactly what they are doing.

• the scale.  Like ever!!  Not even one time this year.

• My heart.  It is such a wild and impressionable thing.  I don't want it to influence my decisions.  I have to keep that thing in check!

I hope your 2014 is full of blessings BIG and SMALL.  Sometimes our biggest blessings are the smallest things in our lives.  Count them.  Count them all.  And listen with me as we journey together to figure out this walk we are on and where the road is taking us!!!

Love you all,

Kellye