Tag Archives: new year

5 Great Products/Ideas to Start Your New Year Right

I love that God gifts us the gift of new beginnings. New years and new days, fresh starts, a chance to begin again. The beginning of a new year is just like the beginning of a new day—a fresh start, a chance to begin again.

There are different views on the new year. Some people love making goals and resolutions for the year; some people think they’re a waste of time. I am solely on the writing down my dreams and goals for the year side. I love writing down what I want to accomplish for the year with God’s help, and I love looking at that list at the end of the year to see what I was able to accomplish.

No matter which side you fall on, we can all agree that the new year is a great time to push reset.

Some Great Resources for This New Year

If you want to get your year off to a great start, here are a few ideas to get you started.

Daring to Imagine Bible Study.

I finished the end of last year and the first few days of January with this Bible study from youversion. It really encouraged my heart and my creativity. I feel like it’s a great study to kick off the new year. If you want to be encouraged and inspired by what God could do with your life, check out this study. Just download youversion on your phone, if you haven’t already, and look for the plan Daring to Imagine by Rick Warren. You won’t be disappointed; I promise you that!

A Simplified Life.

I read this book by Emily Ley during the last few weeks of last year and loved it! All of Emily Ley books are great, and this one is no exception. I read several of her books last year, but I think this is a great one for a brand new year. It’s all about simplifying your life. She teaches you how to do that by decluttering your home, schedule, calendar, and making time for what’s most important. It’s both really practical with checklists and ideas, and inspirational—which is why I love the book. I think it’s the perfect January book!

Find your word for the year.

My word for the year is more of a phrase. I chose joyful and grateful spirit from Galatians 4. I want my focus this year to be a joyful and grateful spirit, to be joyfully grateful. So many of the problems we have could be taken care of if we simply chose to be grateful for what we’ve been gifted and chose joy. If you haven’t chosen a word for the year, Dayspring has a great quiz you can take. I’ve done that in years past and loved it!

Faithfully Stepping Journal.

If you don’t already journal every day as a part of your morning, I can’t encourage it enough. I use these journals every single morning for my morning time routine. It helps me stay on track every single day with my prayer life and my Bible reading. You don’t have to use these journals, but at least use something to write down what God is teaching you each and every day. It will stay with you much longer; I promise.

A to-do list.

It doesn’t sound like an amazing new year product, but it has the potential to change your life. Commit every day to writing down a list of what you need to accomplish for the day and sticking with it. I recommend using the spiral notebook system if you don’t already have a plan. Even if you don’t accomplish everything on your list for the day, at least it gets you accomplishing something. Very few days do I accomplish everything on my list, but it gives me a direction time and time again throughout the day.

These are just a few simple ideas to help get us back on track in this new year. What ideas do you have for a brand new year?

My Word for the Year

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I can’t believe it’s January of a new year. Where did the time go?

A Look Back

Every year, Matt and I spend some time in December reflecting on the year. We write down all the good that happened. I’m always amazed at God’s goodness when we wrap up the year. 2022 was no different. We can see God’s hand and faithfulness all over our family this year.

After we finish processing the year, we move on to the new year. We write down our goals for the new year, what we want to accomplish, things we want to change, dreams we want to go after, and more.

My Word for the Year

Then, we choose a word to focus on for the year. Last year, at the beginning of the year, I chose the word fulfilled. I wanted to remember all year long that God was enough, and that I have all I need. My verse for the year was psalm 23:1.

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
Psalm 23:1

The word I chose for this year is believe. It’s a pretty common word. In fact, I saw it on so many Christmas T-shirts this year. The simple fact is I want to increase my faith; I want to take Jesus at his word. No more doubting, second guessing, stutter stepping, questioning…I want to believe. Like the disciples, I want to say, God, increase my faith.

Choosing to Take God at His Word

The older I get and the more I grow in my faith, I realize how weak my faith is at times. As a child and then into my teen years and college years, I had no problems with faith. I had more faith than the next person, or at least I thought I did. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized how much I don’t believe—how much I doubt.

This year, I am choosing to take God at his word. I am going to choose to believe that God will come through for me this time, just like he did last time. I will believe that God loves me, and I can rest in that love. It has nothing to do with whether I deserve it or not. I am choosing to believe that God will be enough when I fall short in my kids’ lives. I’m choosing to believe God is not done working in my life; and that he is going to use me in this new year, in spite of my failures. I will believe that I am doing the work he wants me to do, and that he will strengthen me and guide me in that work. I have some personal things I am choosing to believe God for this year as well.

Believe.

It’s a simple word, but it’s power? Not quite so simple. The word believe is tied to faith, and faith can move mountains. I’m excited to see what mountains are going to move this year! Want to join me on the journey?

That’s my word for this year.

What’s yours?

For More Encouragement

If you want to find a word for the year but need help finding one, check out Day Spring. That’s how I found my word for 2022. You can also read my post, The No-Stress Way to Find Your Word for the Year.
Also, if you want to start January strong with a morning time routine, check out my morning time routine training videos. And be sure to visit Manney Resources. We have everything you need to get started—journals, devotionals, books, etc.

The No Stress Way to Find Your Word for the Year

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Choosing a Word for the Year

Choosing a word for the year has become really popular over the last few years. I love the concept of it. I think it’s a great idea, but I have a confession to make. I’ve never actually done it. To me, picking one word for the year seems so daunting. I’m just not bright enough to be able to pick one word to summarize my entire year. I admire people who can, though.

However, that all changed when my mother-in-law sent me an article this week with a link for a quiz for finding your word for the year. It intrigued me, so I took the quiz. It was only seven questions. At the end, it gave me a word for the year, based on my answers to the questions. The word was fulfilled. I love that.

I had my ten-year-old daughter take the test, and her word was beloved. I love that too, and it’s perfect for her for the year.

The Power of Words

There is such power behind words. Words can be beautiful and uplifting or cruel and degrading. It’s all in the words we choose and how we use them. Solomon understood this when he wrote about the power of the tongue in Proverbs.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.
Proverbs 18:21 KJV

Here’s another way to put it.

Words kill, words give life; they’re either poison or fruit—you choose.
Proverbs 18:21 MSG

I think picking a word to come back to all year long can help us keep coming back to what is important to us and what we want to focus on. For me, I want to focus on the word fulfilled. I want to remember this year when I get discouraged, that God meets my every need. I have more than enough. I am so incredibly blessed. I love the life that I am living, and it so fulfills me. I want to remember these words from Psalm 23:1.

The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
Psalm 23:1

Choosing Your Word for the Year

Maybe you already have your word for the year. If you do, just disregard this post. If however, you are like me, and it seems too daunting to find one for the year, I hear you. I suggest trying this quiz from DaySpring. It may be just the thing you need to help you find your word for the year.

Once I took the quiz and received my word for the year, it no longer seemed so daunting. Other words started coming to mind—words that inspired me. So I made a list of words for this year. I chose each of these words and think any of them would make a great word for the year. Take a look at them below and see if maybe one of these words could be your word for the year.

Hopefully, this post encourages you to pick a word for this year. If you do, tag me on social media and let me know what it is. I would love to hear it! Happy word hunting!

For Extra Encouragement

If you are looking to have a great year this year, I believe the best way you can do that is by spending time every morning with God, first-thing. The best way I have found to do this is through my morning time routine. Check out that post for ideas on starting your own morning time routine. If you like videos, check out my free Morning Time Routine Course. If you need resources to get started, be sure to check out our devotionals, journals, and books, available from Manney Resources.

A New Year! 3 Steps to Take to Have Your Best Year Yet!

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365 New Mornings

It’s a beautiful new year. There’s something about the beauty of a new year. It’s empty and full of so many possibilities. Because my passion is mornings, I see 365 mornings stretched out before me. I see 365 new mornings and new mercies.

It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22,23 KJV

God’s compassion starts fresh every morning. He gives us a fresh supply of mercy and compassion each morning. That’s the most encouraging thought as we face a brand new year.

Facing this New Year with Confidence

While everybody around us may face this new year with fear, trepidation, and uncertainty, we can step into this year with confidence in a God who has not forsaken us, in a God who gives us a clean slate every day.

Just as we can be sure that the sun will rise every day this year, we can be equally sure that God will walk alongside us every day in this new year.

If you want this year to be better than any other year so far, I believe it begins with three simple steps. If you want to have the best year yet, start with these three steps.

1. Write Down Your Goals and Dreams for this Year

You May Say I'm a Dreamer Journal — My Dream Journal

If you want to accomplish something great, it starts with writing it down. Take the time in these first few days of the new year to write down all the dreams you have for this year and what you want to accomplish.

open journal with the words 2021 goals and dreams written — Inside my Dream Journal before I wrote down my goals for the year

If you don’t write it down, you probably won’t accomplish it. Every year, I take the time to write down what I want to accomplish. Those goals range from books I want to write, projects I want to complete, vacations I want to take, places I want to visit, things I want to do, goals personally, and more.

“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.”
Tony Robbins

“People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine.”
Brian Tracy

2. Get Up Early

If you want to accomplish great things for God this year, it starts with getting up earlier. When Matt and got really serious about our mornings and got up earlier than we ever had before and started doing it on a consistent basis, our creativity and productivity grew in leaps and bounds.

If you want to find extra time in your day to begin to accomplish your dreams, I believe it can be found in getting up earlier and starting your day with God, then moving on to what He has for you for the day. There’s so many wasted hours waiting to be claimed in the early morning hours.

“The difference between rising at five and seven o’clock in the morning, for 40 years, supposed a man to go to bed at the same hour at night, is nearly equivalent to the addition of ten years to a man’s life.”
Philip Doddridge

3. Develop a Morning Time Routine

After you set goals and determine to get up earlier, the third step is to develop a consistent morning time routine. This is the routine you do every morning that sets you up for success for the rest of your day. My morning time routine starts with making a cup of coffee and lighting a candle. Then I begin my time with God. Reading my Bible, journaling, and doing my prayer time. For more details about my morning time routine, read Creating a Morning Time Routine You Love.

Matt and I have created a system we call 30 to THRIVE. It consists of reading your Bible or doing a devotional for 10 minutes, journaling for ten minutes, and reading a book for ten minutes. You can find out more at Manney Resources where you can download a free Morning Time Guide to help you get started on your journey,

Matt and I believe that if you can change your morning, you can grow your faith and change your life, and you do that best by developing a morning time routine.

2021

2021 can be your best year yet! Start with writing down your goals for the year, then figure out how to get up earlier consistently. Lastly, implement a morning time routine and see if that doesn’t make this year your best one yet!

My Not-So-Great Start to the Year

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The Ending to our Holidays

So it’s a new year, and ours is off to a crazy start! We spent the holidays in Illinois with family and drove back to Pennsylvania a few days after the start of the new year. Well, my husband Matt (who has a severe wheat allergy), got wheat somewhere on our trip and spent the entire night in the bathroom at our hotel throwing up. From there, we drove home, stopping every little bit for him to use a bathroom on the way. We finally got home, began the long process of unloading the van and unpacking the suitcases and fell into bed in the early morning hours.

The Disaster at Home

The next morning, we awoke to a disaster in our kitchen. We have had a mice problem this winter and have been repeatedly setting traps. Well, apparently they decided to throw a party while we were out-of-town. They got into everything in our pantry! We had to throw out every single item in our pantry. Frustrated doesn’t even begin to describe how I felt! Matt went out and bought more traps, we called an exterminator, and spent the next few days cleaning out every closet, every shelf, every storage bin in our house, and more. It was quite an undertaking.

In the midst of all this chaos, I took an afternoon to read a little bit to try to take my mind off all the craziness. I went upstairs to read while my kids played in the playroom. A few minutes later, I looked up from my book to see my three-year-old Maggie standing on top of the Lego table trying to jump rope! Seriously?! I told her immediately to get down. What happened next was a disaster. I watched as if in slow motion as she tried to jump down from the table. She went one way and the table went the other way. The momentum shoved her off-balance and into a corner wall where she hit her head and split it open.

A Visit to Urgent Care

So my quiet afternoon was interrupted by screaming, lots of blood, and a visit to urgent care. We spent the night in the urgent care getting four staples into Maggie’s head. That was not a fun process, and not one I am looking to repeat anytime in the near future.

Maggie all wrapped up and ready to go home.

That night was followed by a flu bug that hit our house. My six-year-old Madison threw up all the next day. Soon after that, Malachi got the bug and spent his day throwing up. With all the craziness, we didn’t do any homeschooling for the entire week.

So that is why I find myself halfway through January and just now getting a post out. Our start to 2018 has been a train wreck! I’m a little scared to see what the rest of the year is going to bring!

Success in God’s Eyes

I was so looking forward to a new year and a fresh start. This is not how I was planning on my year starting out. I can get all worked up and crazy about it, or I can choose to just accept it for what it is. I am reminded of a message Matt preached a few weeks ago.

In a message Matt was preaching before Christmas, He talked about success and what success looks like. One of the phrases he said really caught my attention.

Success isn’t achievement; it’s obedience to God.

He followed up with a few questions to ask ourselves to see if we are truly being successful.

Did I do what God said?
Am I doing what He created me to do?
Am I doing the best I can with the abilities, resources, and opportunities I have been given?
Have I followed through?

I think my picture of success probably looks so different from God’s picture. My picture of success looks like starting out 2018 with a bang. Exercising every day, eating right and losing weight, getting my entire house cleaned and organized, homeschooling each day like a pro, writing a couple of blog posts a week, working on my book, and on and on the list goes. I wonder instead if God’s list looks something like this.

Spend time with Me today.

Love your littles and take care of them today.

Encourage and love your husband today.

Notice the people who I put into your path today. Love them for Me.

Do your best to keep your home and home school running smoothly but don’t stress about it.

Rest in Me, and let Me control your life. I can do a much better job anyway.

This year, I want my definition of success to be simple obedience to God each and every day by stepping into what He has for me that day. ~Faithfully Stepping~

Photo credit: Ben White