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Your One Word For 2012 Matters

By Bonnie Gray • February 7, 2012 • 25 Comments

Words are a dime a dozen in a social media saturated world. How can one word change anything?

Here it is. A picture of our One Word For 2012.

Can you find your one word in this collage of hopes, dreams and prayers?

God can.

Not only does He know your One Word, He also knows the others that keep you up and grip your heart, when you’re lost by a breath of uncertainty or discouragement.

He is faithful. Even if we’re not.

Your One Words Are Special

For our January Faith Barista Jam, I put out a prompt to share one word God has placed on your heart for the new year.

You came out in full force. The comments and blog posts you shared were phenomenal.

By the time I was halfway through, I had to stop and sit in awe of how personal our God is and how uniquely He speaks into our real-life stories.

I wanted you to see how special your words were. Your words come from a place deep inside — where we wrestle and dream with God.

Can you see the ones that look a little bigger? The words grow bigger if more people choose the same words.

Isn’t it beautiful — how we’re all so different and yet, we make up this community of faith, pregnant with promise?

I don’t know where these words will lead us in the coming months ahead.

One thing is for certain.

This journey requires putting our faith in Someone to guide us.

Someone who can change us.

God Heard

I don’t know how your week has been since you’ve shared your hopes for the new year.

More likely than not, other soul-harming words may be threatening to topple your one word from it’s rightful place.

Just like the serpent did long ago — after God just delivered Perfect Paradise words to Adam and Eve — he questions us today: “Did God really say… ?”

It’s been like that for me.

But, I’m putting my confidence in a few things.

– It doesn’t even matter whether we’re stumbling or succeeding.

– What matters is:

The God who guides us loves us.

“Absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.”
~ Rom. 8:38-39

The God who loves us is faithful.

“If we are faithless, He is still faithful because he cannot deny himself.” 2 Tim. 2:13

Keep going. God heard your One Word prayers.

Unlike others who rely on new year resolutions, our One Words are not guiding us.

The God behind the One Words are.

 

“But let all who take refuge in You be glad,
Let them ever sing for joy;
And may You shelter them,
That those who love Your Name may exult in You.” Psalm 5:11

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How are you doing in your new year?

Pull up a chair. Would love to hear… Click to share comment.

If you’d like to share your One Word for the new year, click here. Add your post or meet the friends behind our One Word Collage.

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Psst… I will be speaking at the Relevant Conference 2012 on October 25th-27th.  An exciting change being announced today. The Relevant Conference is now called: Allume Social.

Allume Social is the Christian women’s social media conference to spur women on to shine the Light that lives within them via the online space.

For more info, check out Allume Social’s website, Facebook, Twitter, or join the Allume Twitter Party (Tuesday 2/7) 9pm EST  #allume

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25 Comments

  • Reply Darlene Armstrong February 7, 2012 at 3:35 am

    My One Little Word for 2012 is JOY.

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:02 am

      Makes me smiling just reading your One Word – joy – Darlene! 🙂

  • Reply Jenny Swart February 7, 2012 at 6:40 am

    How encouraging are your words. They are like a light pouring into my darkened heart, I am so pleased that I found your blog so I could revel in this wonder. You are truly amazing. I have many words for my 2012, I haven’t chosen one… but if I was forced to choose, I’d say Adventure. I feel the winds tugging me and my heart longing to be free, everything is screaming; “RUN! GO! NOW!” and I don’t know if that is just me, or the Holy Spirit. I get it quite often. It makes me want to pack up my things and leave, disappear. Drive wherever and do whatever. It’s hard to buckle down that urge. But, I know a change is coming, I can feel it in the sun and taste it on the wind… a day is coming when I will not longer be held back by walls or work. I pray that day comes soon.

    Until then, a crazed adventurist,
    -Jenny.

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:03 am

      Hi Jenny! It’s beautiful to hear your word – Adventure – buzz in you, keeping you company throughout your day. I wonder how God will unfold it in you! Blessings!

  • Reply Lisa notes February 7, 2012 at 7:18 am

    I love the word cloud, Bonnie. And I love that God knows where each of our words are. Thanks!

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:03 am

      I love that I can see *you* in the Word cloud, Lisa. 😉

  • Reply HisFireFly February 7, 2012 at 7:50 am

    Thank you for putting our words together into the chorus He desires to create – the wordle reveals much!

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:04 am

      It’s amazing how it’s clustered around “trust”. Isn’t that the truth, friend? 🙂 xo

  • Reply Christy February 7, 2012 at 8:10 am

    This is just awesome Bonnie~Thanks for putting that visual together and honoring each of our words. Beautiful.

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:05 am

      I feel it’s such an honor to share them together, Christy. Here we are scattered across different lives God’s placed us in.. yet, we share a bond. We’ve got this treasure of our One Words from God — and sharing it with each other! *just gets me* 🙂 *hugs*

  • Reply Caryn February 7, 2012 at 9:35 am

    I found my “one word”. My word for 2012 is “Today”. because I am a “I’ll do it tomorrow” kind of woman. God is totally with me on this and frequently sends me little reminders. Yesterday it was a new song by Mandisa, kind of cracked me up. :D. Thank you for your post and I love the mosaic. Very nice.
    Caryn

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:06 am

      Caryn — it’s so beautiful how God speaks to you through song… and He’s gifted you with this one word “today”. 🙂

  • Reply Christine February 7, 2012 at 9:58 am

    In the post I just received today there are words all jumbled up (the ones I assume everyone picked for themselves for 2012 in a nice sort of mosaic) and as I read them I came across “interprid”. What is that? Because it’s not in the dictionary.

    • Reply Bonnie Gray February 7, 2012 at 10:01 am

      Hi Christine! 🙂 That was my typo. The word selected by someone in our community is “intreprid”. It means “fearless”. And yes, the words are ones everyone picked for themselves.

      • Reply Christine February 7, 2012 at 11:20 am

        I used that website, wordle.net, to scramble up the beatitudes. I was thinking of wiping tea across the page to give it an antique look and framing it. It’s lots of fun working with words.

  • Reply Christine February 7, 2012 at 10:12 am

    You mean “Intrepid” and yes, I know what it means. I picked that word myself but I am sure others picked the same one. 🙂

  • Reply Deborah February 7, 2012 at 10:49 am

    I LOVE this picture! I feel inspired when I see these words altogether.
    I want to use all those words in my life, not just the one that found me (which was ‘open’).
    Thank you so much for doing this X

  • Reply Tammy February 7, 2012 at 12:24 pm

    I love how you put our words together. Such unique and special words and one God who loves us. I have to say I didn’t realize my word “follow” would require some lessons on discipline and doing as God has asked. As I have thought about it lately I realized that is what follow means on this journey with God. He is the leader who is in charge and not obeying shows a lack of trust. This has been a hard lesson to learn lately. yet I continue to follow and be on my knees when I don’t follow as I should. Blessings on your day

  • Reply Emy Fabro February 7, 2012 at 12:34 pm

    My one word for 2012 is… ” SWEET”. To be in God’s presence, to listen to him and feel embraced…. To just stay for that moment and be still…… the sweetness lingers…

  • Reply Laura Rath February 7, 2012 at 4:55 pm

    Hi Bonnie,
    Your posts are so encouraging! God heard, guides, and is behind our One Word Prayers. So true!

    In Christ,
    Laura

  • Reply joan February 7, 2012 at 6:34 pm

    Absolutely beautiful, Bonnie. Our words are a symphony for Jesus. I was excited to see my One Word: Righteousness. Congrats on your blessing to speak at Allume Social. I am looking forward to attending.

  • Reply Angie in Guernsey February 8, 2012 at 12:23 pm

    I just posted this on the original ‘one word’ link…
    I have only just got round to posting this…but my one ward, since the beginning of the year, is ‘Mercy’ aka ‘Loving kindness’. It’s an area I’m challenged in. Being kind isn’t my default pattern of behaviour (more like ‘put up, shut up and get on with it).
    Didn’t see ‘mercy’, surprisingly, in the word shape. Perhaps because, unlike me, most of the women here are already kind and merciful and are aspiring to higher spiritual goals…?!

  • Reply Helen February 9, 2012 at 6:05 am

    I saw my word: AFFIRM! Thanks Bonnie for the great visual reminder. I love this word cloud!

  • Reply cheryl February 9, 2012 at 8:51 am

    Thank you for putting our one word together in the picture. Do you know that I searched it to find my word? And my insecurity rose up inside me, as I searched for the word I shared….and I actually started to believe that my word was not as important as others’ words….I actually feared and believed that it would not be there in that collage. Do you know that when I found “my word” that I shared, my heart leaped!! I am important!! I wasn’t judged in value next to others. Tears are flowing down my cheeks. I didn’t realize I struggled this much with my worth and value. Thank you for being a part of God’s plan to embrace me once again with His love.

  • Reply Saturday Digest~February 11 « Because Of Grace February 11, 2012 at 11:48 am

    […] are you doing on your focus word for the year? Can you find the word “Affirm” in this word cloud by Bonnie Grey @ Faith Barrista? ~Still loving the images and languid pace of Winter’s description […]

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