New Year's Resolutions?

New Year's Resolutions were made to be broken.  I mean, seriously, does anyone stick to their resolutions past January 31st!?  We start out the year with a long list of things we want to do and within weeks the list is tossed aside.  It can be hard to commit to several life changing goals all at once.

A few years ago I heard of One Word 365.  Basically One Word means picking only a single word, not a long list of things, to focus on for the year.  So I decided to give it a whirl.  The first couple of years I chose a word but did not really commit myself to it.  But in 2012 I chose a word I truly felt God laying on my heart and throughout the year I worked on it.  Intentional.  My word for 2012 was intentional, learning to live on purpose.  I was very excited to choose another word, after much prayer, for 2013.

Woman to Woman's mission is, encouraging ordinary women to do extraordinary things for God.  Titus 2:4-5 says, "Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God."  This is our goal, to encourage each and every one of you to step out and do great things for God, your husband, your children, and your community.

Here at Woman to Woman, we have banded together and chose a word for this ministry.  A word that all four of us will commit to for the year.  A word that we will use to encourage you.  A word that we pray will change lives.

Our word....

What does serve mean to us?

Debi, I will be the first to admit that I have always been kind of 'spoiled.'  I was the first child, the only daughter, daddy's little girl & mama's big girl.  Then I became spoiled by my hubby...he treats me like a queen!  {*smiles*}  Because of this, I've never been the best at 'serving' others.  Due to a turn of events in 2012, God called me from Children's Ministry to Lead Pastor.  Quite a change, huh!  I spent over 30 years in Children's  Ministry & now, suddenly, my whole focus is grown-ups! 

Over a period of several months, God gave me 2 verses for our church, Hebrews 6:19 CEV ("This hope is like a firm and steady anchor for our souls. In fact, hope reaches behind the curtain and into the most holy place.") & Mark 10:45 NCV ("...the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people.").  These verses have given me our church vision & mission..."Anchored in Jesus...Serving in His Name"  I am praying that God will grow me into a true serving servant!  In order to be a servant, we must be anchored in Christ! 


Mandy, Last year I heard about this "pick one word for the whole year thing" and my word was intentional...honestly I didn't really take it serious. My excuse was I didn't really know what that meant and new years resolutions are made to be broken right? But this year about 3 weeks ago God put the word "Serve" on my heart. It has nothing to do with the fact that our Church purpose is to serve or anything like that it's just a word that God has been basically screaming at me for weeks. Of course...I've been ignoring it. A lot. The other day I was laying on the couch watching a movie with the kids and a plaque my husband made us fell off our wall and literally crashed to the floor. It's solid wood and this thing is HEAVY. Can you guess what it says? Here I'll give you a hint...Serve..."As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.." everyone knows that verse..ok God I get the message loud and clear. So I started the journey into digging deeper on how to "Serve" the Lord. It made me realize not only was my HOUSE not serving the Lord, I was downright ignoring Him...and then it made me cry and the guilt crept in...last year in my heart of hearts I wanted my family to serve the Lord. 

I vowed not to let another year pass by without digging deeper as a FAMILY and getting to know the Lord better than ever before...but like everything else I vow, it got thrown out the window at the first sign of stress and anger. So since God has been screaming at me loud and clear I'm going to use this year to delve deeper into what it means to serve AS A FAMILY and to SERVE MY FAMILY. Right now all I can think is I'm going to fail like everything else so why even try but surely if God is calling me and leading me to this word so strongly He has a lesson I need to learn and a blessing just for me and my family so here we go...2013 is the year to Serve and to learn what that truly means. Are you ready?

"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15

Shari, One of my favorite things to do has always been to help others, and to show them that there is a God who loves them more than they could imagine. Sometimes when the trials of life come, I find myself stepping away from this mentality and focusing more on myself. This is the last thing that God wants to happen. There is a time and a place for focusing on our needs and wants, but it can get out of hand and become and idol when this is the only thing we focus on. Through these past few weeks the Lord has been placing the word "serve" on my heart and creating a new desire in me to serve, my family, friends and others in the community. The verses found in Philippians 2:3-4 really clarifies what the Father has been saying to me. "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."

We at Woman to Woman want to challenge you this year to live a life of service to your family and friends. Meditate on the words above found in Titus 2:4-5. Find ways that you can make this verse come alive in your life as you go about this new year with a servants heart. Look for that family member or special someone that needs some extra time and love. Give of yourself so that they can see Jesus truly loves them as they see His light shining through you.


Jenifer, My deepest desire is for the world to see Jesus through me.  All throughout the Bible you see stories of Jesus serving others.  He, the King of all kings, even washed the feet of others as an act of service.  If people are going to see Jesus in me, I must serve.  Serve my husband, my children, my family, my church, my community, and anyone who God places in my path. Sometimes this service may simply be lending a helping hand for a few moments and sometimes it may be going beyond me and serving in His strength.  I am thrilled to focus on service this year and be the hands and feet of Christ.  


So ladies, on the first Sunday of each month we will come together here at Woman to Woman and talk about our word, serve, and how we have committed to serving throughout the previous month. Our prayer is that you join with us on this journey.  Throughout the month, in your own life, we encourage you to serve, then come here on the first Sunday of the month and tell us how you have done.  We greatly encourage you to comment on the posts and tell us how you are doing, your struggles, your successes, and your thoughts.  If you are a blogger, we encourage you to also write a post about serving and link up with us. {The link up will only be for blog posts about serving.}

Are you ready ladies?  Are you ready to serve in 2013?

Grab a link up button!

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