A couple of weeks ago, I was writing a card to my darling for Christmas about what I was praying for us in 2025, and the word “strong” came so strongly (😉) into my heart. It immediately resonated with me knowing some of what may be coming in 2025, as well as how complementary it is to my 2024 word, 'sacrifice'. My prayer for myself for 2025 is that I would become stronger in my relationship with God, stronger in my love, communication and selflessness in our marriage, stronger in my body physically, stronger in my good habits, strong in caring unconditionally for any children who may stay in our home, stronger in my boldness in sharing about my faith and stronger in my emotional capacity to support others.
Unlike other years, I have not quite landed on 1 particular scripture but 4 that tie together so beautifully and will be my foundation for this year. These 4 verses are so powerful because they point to where my strength will come from – it will not be from within myself or from any amount of human trying. But through Him and Him alone.
Hebrews 11:33-34 says “who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.” Through becoming stronger in my faith and trust in God, I can do all these things listed and trade my weakness for strength. I may not be stopping the mouths of lions, but I can take my own thoughts captive and ensure that everything that comes out of my mouth is honouring, uplifting and encouraging to others. I may not be quenching actual fire, but through His love spilling out of me, I may be able to soften a hurting child’s heart. I may not be escaping a literal sword, but I can escape the tempations and traps of the enemy who will try to keep me distracted and off God’s track for my life.
Ephesians 6:10 says “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” And Joshua 1:9 says “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where you go.” These verses remind me how I become stronger – in His word and in His presence. The power of His might is greater than anything else and He is always with me no matter where I go so I do not need to be afraid, fearful or avoid the challenges that are going to come my way. I just need to firstly be obedient to His call to be courageous and do whatever it is that He is calling me to. And then remember and trust in His might knowing that nothing can stop His plans. This means I can be bold in sharing my faith and my life with people who do not know Jesus yet. I am just the messenger and it’s His might, His love and His spirit that changes hearts and minds and turns them toward Him.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 says “And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” The other day I was reading this little daily devotional by Priscilla Shirer and it was talking about the blessing of pain – that without pain, we don’t recognise that we need healing. That without pain, we don’t recognise our need for our Saviour. The hardest challenges of my life so far have been the moments when it’s felt easiest to come to Him. In some ways, that’s been one of the biggest challenges of 2024 – life was too easy that it actually was hard to prioritise God time because I was doing fine on my own. So I understand this verse in a new way now – I want to rely on Him and Him be my strength rather than simply existing in my own strength. I want Him to grow my capacity so that the things that I found difficult last year, I will walk through with ease this year. I want to recognise and acknowledge my weaknesses and areas for growth so that God can convict and challenge my heart to become more like Him. It’s in weakness and humility where we come to God, needing His grace to carry us, that He can move in our hearts and grow us stronger and more like Him.
I want to get to the end of 2025 and look back and see all the moments where God’s strength overcame my weakness and through Him I was able to accomplish something so much greater than I could have done myself. I want prayer and trusting God to be my defaults rather than freaking out first and then making my way to God’s presence. I want to feel empowered by more knowledge of His word and a sharper “sword” to combat the distractions and attacks of the enemy. I want to rid myself of any ‘not being bothered’ attitudes that stop me from important priorities in my walk with Jesus, in my marriage and family, and in my health.
I invite you to join me in this journey of becoming stronger. One of my goals for this year is investing a lot more into this blog and my social pages both as an accountability for me to keep focusing on what I’m learning and growing in, and to be faithful to keep honouring God by sharing my journey as an encouragement to others whether 1 or 100 people see my content. So I am excited to take you all along for the ride in 2025!

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