Ephesians 5:15-17 says “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”
As I reflect on 2017, I honestly can’t even begin to tell you where this year went. It seems like every year flies by faster and faster before I even realize it’s gone. It’s so so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life, a slave to our schedules.
If we’re being honest, that’s a huge part of American culture.
Personally, I’m a do-er. I am a very task-oriented individual. I like to be busy. It gives me a sense of purpose, like I’m needed and important if my to-do list is a mile and a half long and my plate is piled to the ceiling. Some of you may be able to relate to that. From a young age we are pushed to do all and be all that we can be, to push ourselves to the limits in order to be successful. It’s not always a bad thing, I have reaped the benefits of this kind of lifestyle—I got into the Governor’s Scholars Program and got a lot of my scholarships for college because of my lengthy list of extracurriculars.
However, this can also be a very dangerous tool of distraction.
Luke 10:38-42 says “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving and she approached Him and said, “Lord do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore, tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
So many times, I find myself like Martha. The enemy uses my desire to feel needed to distract me from my walk with the Lord. I get so caught up in “doing” that I forget to just sit at the feet of Jesus.
This year, I’m praying so hard that I will find the strength to say no to the things of this world and say yes to Jesus. I pray that I will no longer be a slave to my schedule but a slave to my savior who made me free. I pray that diligence will be a virtue in 2018. I pray that I will have the strength and the faith to purposefully choose Jesus above all else, in every aspect of every single day, because He first chose me. I pray that my hours will be filled first sitting at the feet of Jesus and drinking deep from the well of the word, and second with everything else. I pray that even when the busy-ness of life hits me head on, I will put on the full armor of God and go to battle, fighting the good fight for my faith.
Jesus already chose us above even His life when He came and took the suffering that we should’ve taken and died the death that we deserved to die, and now He lovingly and graciously invites us to choose Him above all else as well.
If you are like me and you struggle with carving out intimate time with Jesus and choosing daily to walk with Him and for Him, know that I am going to battle praying for you this year! May this be the year that we all choose to sit at the feet of Jesus rather than get “distracted with much serving”.
Wishing you all the best in 2018,
Alley
Fundraising Updates:
- Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who has supported me so far by just donating or by buying ornaments!! Together we raised over $550 just on ornament sales alone! I’m waiting for one more check to go through after New Years and then I will be adding that to my fundraising account so that my blog site will reflect my new total. Praise Jesus!!!!
- I am working on gathering my ministry team right now so if that is something that interests you please let me know!! All that means is that you and your family would agree to regularly talk with and support me on my journey to the race and during the race through financial support and/or prayer and encouragement. I will be setting up times to meet with different families in my ministry team so that we can pray together and talk about my needs heading into this year so again, if that is something that interests you please let me know! Even if you think I already know that you want to be a part of that, still make sure to text me or say something to me so that I can add you to my list of those to make plans with and keep updated. ??
- As some of you may have seen, I just started selling t-shirts to fund my race as well! If you would like one of those they are $20 (add $2 for 2X-4X) and they are supposed to be a super nice, soft material! I am hoping to make my first order for these on Jan. 29 so that I can deliver them that weekend, but my goal is to sell atleast 75 on this first order so that I can make the maximum amount to fund my race so please let me know as soon as possible if yall want to order one of those so that I can keep track of how many are going on that order! Also note that since these are a softer material, they are a little more form fitting so if you are between sizes you may want to order a size up. I may also be able to do youth sizes if I get enough interest for those, so let me know if yall will want to order youth shirts!
Thanks again for everything y’all have done to support me so far! I’m so excited to see what the Lord is going to do in 2018!
