I saw probably one of the most accurate and still funny things on Instagram the other day. It said, “2019 Be like, “But did you die?”” I laughed because really I could almost cry at the truth contained in that one question. I can’t wait to share a post detailing how my one word last year impacted the year though!
It’s no secret this past year has been hard. You honestly have no idea how hard behind the scenes–shared here and on social media, have been. But today I’m sharing what I thought my one word for the year was; but then it changed, abruptly and after a 1200 word post had been written on it.
Of course one of the more documented hard areas of my life this past year was the Melanoma in Situ diagnosis. And although one of the harder events of the year, God also provided a great buffer, antidote, all-around fantastic distraction that happily coincided with the appointment that would result in a surprise biopsy. This event has served as a great reminder to me that God’s unseen timing is perfect and sometimes unusual.
There have also been hard places where relationships have bumped up against each other in painful ways. This has been a recurring problem and a hard one to catch my breath from. There’s so much more to say and yet so many things I cannot say; it’s been and continues to be a hard and painful place friends.
On the flip side and in spite of the previously mentioned hardships, I have laughed more this year. I have enjoyed the little things and celebrated some big accomplishments. I have enjoyed small accomplishments and celebrated the little things. It’s been so good y’all, not just for me but especially for my children.
So my one word, grow, has done exactly what it was supposed to do, stretch me into uncomfortable areas whether it be a scary diagnosis, painful relationships, laughing when it might look silly or being silly when I might get laughed at. One more thing about my word grow; it helped tremendously to have a friend know my word, know my heart, know my story and take the initiative to remind me of my word. Now, honestly, so many of these reminders came when I least expected it and many times was not in the mood to hear it! doesn’t mean they weren’t timed perfectly and much needed.
And now to what I thought my new word for 2020 was supposed to be. Quickly, I fully intend my 2019 word grow to stick around this year; it’s been a phenomenal word but I know it’s not finished with me yet. So what I thought was my word for 2020 came fairly quickly, like the first word I thought of. Regardless of how quickly my word comes, I always spend a little time wrestling around with it; I look up scripture verses, quotes, songs, and synonyms. I make multiple lists of words that are in the running, sometimes spurred by researching my one word.
This year, what I thought was my one word kept making each and every list, it popped up in synonym and scripture searches, it was discussed late into the night, and it made me smile each time I thought of it. And then all of a sudden, out of literal no where, I knew what my one word was supposed to be…but that’s a follow-up post.
My One Word
My one word for 2020 was going to be DELIGHT.
Synonyms:
(noun) contentment, joy, satisfaction, enjoyment, happiness (verb) rejoice, glory.
Scripture verses (NLT):
Psalm 37:4–Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires.
Romans 12:10–Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.
Psalm 119:111–Your laws are my treasure; they are my heart’s delight.
2 Samuel 22:20–He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me.
Job 22:26–Then you will take delight in the Almighty and look up to God.
Psalm 18:19–He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me.
Psalm 37:23–The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.
Psalm 111:2–How amazing are the deeds of the LORD! All who delight in him should ponder them.
Psalm 119:77–Surround me with your tender mercies so I may live, for your instructions are my delight.
Delight Quotes:
“Dust off that Bible. It has the answers you are looking for, and its delights await you.”
― Elizabeth George
“When you delight yourself in the Lord, His Word and His ways become the focus and foundation of your life.”
― Elizabeth George
“God wants us to delight in living His purpose for us, which is why our passion plays a huge part!”
― Paige Omartian
“Dust off that Bible. It has the answers you are looking for, and its delights await you.”
― Elizabeth George
“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.”
–Maya Angelou
“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.”
–e.e. Cummings
“We find delight in the beauty and happiness of children that makes the heart too big for the body.”
–Ralph Waldo Emerson
“You will find truth more quickly through delight than gravity. Let out a little more string on your kite.”
–Alan Cohen
“Life delights in life.”
–William Blake
“Birds sing after a storm; why shouldn’t people feel as free to delight in whatever remains to them?”
–Rose Kennedy
“Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature’s delight.”
–Marcus Aurelius
“Only when your consciousness is totally focused on the moment you are in can you receive whatever gift, lesson, or delight that moment has to offer.”
–Barbara De Angelis
“Intelligence is nothing without delight.”
–Paul Claudel
“The quality of life is in proportion, always, to the capacity for delight. The capacity for delight is the gift of paying attention.”
–Julia Cameron
In conversation one night about what I thought was my one-word, there was discussion about the difference between joy and delight. After wrestling through some random thoughts and pondering the two words in my own life I composed this differentiation, “Joy is the root of delight.”
I have found in my life this year, in my growth, the freer I have become, the more joyful I have become, the more delight I have taken or been able to take in my daily life. I don’t believe the doors of delight can be opened until the roots of joy, the true joy rooted in Christ, is beginning to grow or nurtured in the heart, mind, and soul.
A bold claim I know, that delight cannot exist without the foundation of a joy founded in Christ, but one I can confidently tell you has been proven in my own life, especially looking back this year, and I challenge anyone else to test it in their own life.
If you choose a word for the year I would love for you to share in the comments below! And make sure you catch the follow-up post to this one sharing my one word for 2020.
And here are my previous posts sharing my one word for the year:
Grow
Steady
Purpose
Give
You wrote this for me. My actual word is delight although it wasn’t supposed to be. I had been contemplating Trust and a few other words but leaning heavily on trust. Then I was reading Song of Solomon during on the second to last day of December and came across the word Tirzah. I just had to know what it meant, it just struck me for some reason. It means “she is his delight”. I didn’t really pay much attention to it although I loved the name and wrote it on my hand to remember.
New Year’s day I started rethinking my word for absolutely no reason and started playing with words and looking up the meaning. I came across SAVOR, as I was looking at that word and it’s definition I suddenly thought of delight which if you follow down the rabbit hole you eventually get to. I did not even step near the hole. I looked up the meaning of delight, Tirzah came back to mind. I am His delight, I can live it. There are many aspects of delight I hope to explore this year.
Thank you for the resources because I am still exploring.
Yeah Nikki! I’m glad these resources came in handy. I was a little disappointed “Delight” wasn’t my word, but I know God has something even better for me.
My word is COMPLETE
synonyms that are showing up in unexpected ways in my goals for this year: accomplish, realize, achieve, develop, create, make excellent, fulfill, bring to fullness, finish
so many good things
many blessing for you and your family this year
Oh, good one! How’s it coming along for you so far?
My word for 2020 is contentment. I have often struggled with the feeling of restlessness and just needing one more thing to be happy. I have everything I need to be fulfilled and content. I will focus on looking to Christ’s love and glory for fulfillment instead of the outside world. I will be happy with all of the blessings in my life and be more present in the moment.
Nice Anna ♥
My one word for this year is Bloom. My “phrase” is Be Still {Rest). I don’t know how the phrase is going to play out, The new year has started out hard and I foresee the year getting harder. Going through some things with my oldest son. Nuff said! Happy New Year!
Girl…I hear ya.
How’s Bloom coming along?
I think it’s slowly happening. I went to a fabulous retreat with my bestie in Memphis this past weekend. Mercy and Mary, with Fr. Michael Gaitley. It was amazing! He wrote “33 Days to Morning Glory” among others. I really felt God shining on this “wilted flower”!