Awakening

January is a great time of year for me. I do not like New Year's Resolutions because I am not good at following through on those. However, I do appreciate having a time that I can look back and evaluate how my life is going. I can look back over the past year and celebrate the good times and victories. I can also mourn the tough times and see what I might learn from those experiences.
As I look back there will be experiences I will say, "Let's do that again!" Other experiences will remind me to, "Never do that again." I hope you have taken time to consider what you accomplished in 2010 and what you have learned. I also want you to think about what God did in and through you in 2010.
During January this year I want us to focus on this idea of awakening. I believe that we often end up sleep walking through parts of life. We get into a routine and we go through the motions in order to get by in life. This really is not a great way to live and it is not what God intended for us. God wants us to be fully awake and aware of what is happening in our lives.
Paul calls us to this in Romans 13:11-14. He calls us to wake and not miss what God is doing. God is always working for the good in our lives, but we often sleep walk right by.
In January we will be focusing on how to wake up and join in with what God is doing around us. I also hope we will learn to pass this on to help others wake up as well.
So take time to look back and reflect on 2010, and then throw some water on your face and get ready to wake up to what God's Spirit will do in 2011.