My Word of the Year 2017

     I had quite a challenge picking my word of the year for 2017.

     In 2015, it was relationship. In 2016, it was hope. But tomorrow marks a new year, a new season, and I needed a new word.

     I considered a lot of words...basically anything that came up multiple times (which is how destroy got in there...sorry).

• Destroy
• All
• Impact
• Grow
• Strategy
• Brave
• Listen
• Abundance
• Compassion

     As I finished up The Broken Way late last night, she kept talking about compassion. She used the verse that says, "Jesus was moved with compassion."

     I thought: "Maybe I should give up on a word of the year and just have a mantra or motto."

     And since Hakuna Matata was taken by Pumba and Timon, I thought maybe "Move with compassion" or "Move toward the mess" (which I got from the title of a book I'll be reviewing soon).

     So maybe I wanted "move" to be my word of the year. But then it sounds too much like "doing" instead of "being." I did want something practical that I could put into action, but I don't want to be judging myself on actions too much. It's a difficult balance to strike.

     But then it hit me: presence. It summed up all my other words in one. Being and compassion and listening and brave and impact all came back to presence.

     God's presence in me and the world. My presence with others. The simplicity of being fully present, what Madeleine L'Engle calls is-ness, is so rare. But in 2017, it won't be rare.

     Can I be fully present for a year? Probably not. I'll fail. I'll stumble. But I can take presence with me. I can take it on mission trips, to camps, to college. I can remember to be present anywhere and anytime. So it is more practical than hope and more of a daily word.

     I know how powerful presence can be. For me, it looks like...

sitting in silence with a hurting friend

holding a tiny baby while its mama sits in church

giving family my face and full attention

understanding where another person is coming from

keeping my hands open for whatever God gives me in my time with Him

resting instead of worrying about the next task

living out the rest of my senior year peacefully

paying attention in class

giving my presence to those who need it most

being myself

sitting by my pond, meditating on truth

staring out over the Amazon River as the skies change

not rushing or getting impatient

     Do you have a word of the year for 2017? If so, share it in the comments below!

~Madeline

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