The following will likely come across as vague, ambiguous, repetitive, and possibly cliché, but it may be the most succinct, yet deepest tidbit I’ve written all year. As has been said before, “less is more.”
I’ve changed in many ways over the year. Now I am…
More honored to be a humble servant, yet more proud to be a humbled son.
More likely to pray for healing over someone and actually believe that it can happen.
More certain that you, and I, and we all have it wrong. But that’s ok.
More likely to forgive, mainly because I recognize my need for forgiveness.
More conscious of my malevolent heart.
More proud to be American, yet less concerned with borders and heritages that focus on differences.
More confident in God’s faithfulness.
More confident as a leader.
More willing to step out in faith that an unplaceable nudge really could be the Holy Spirit at work.
More positive that possessions, and their preceding desires, breed greed, rights-mentality, and isolation.
More grateful for grace than I was the day before yesterday.
More appreciative of brothers and sisters that will fight for community.
More comfortable not reaching the expectation I’ve set for myself.
More sure of God’s power and presence, yet…
More likely to vocalize doubts about God and simultaneously feel closer to him.
More patient towards… Nope, no qualifiers. Just more patient.
More sensitive to my surroundings, my words, and my egocentrism.
More attentive to the significance of the over-used, dumbed-down, catchphrase of “spiritual warfare.”
More accustomed to the wounds, fatigue, and satisfaction of leadership.
More unsure about what is the “right” theology, and doubtful it matters as much as I thought.
More comfortable calling you sister, and meaning and wanting nothing more than that.
More understanding as to what the “bride of Christ” can look like on earth.
More free to be myself, make mistakes, and even write grammatically incorrect phrases.
More thankful that Christianity isn’t an Americanism.
More blessed than I realized to be part of the Belkot family, all of whom I am quite proud of.
More convinced that prayers really are what others, and myself, have said that they are.
More passionate that secrets in the dark corrode, the person you lean on is going to fail, and the avoidance of healthy conflict steals, kills, and destroys relationships.
More cognizant of God’s love for you and how that should have an effect when it’s “us.”
More hopeful that hope will resonate in the hearts of those feeling hopeless.
More aware that all of these changes occurred because I focused on myself LESS.
“Less, not more,” that’s the moral of my year, more or less.
New Reader? Feel free to add your email address in the space provided on the left to receive blog updates.
