The Year 2017 is brought to you by the letter "E".

Good Morning!

 Lots of ladies choose a focus word of the year each year and I really like that idea. As I thought about what my word for the year 2017 should be, I just kept coming back to the word "early". I was feeling like I was always running late and feeling stressed out about all the things I was trying to get done. This is especially a problem on week day mornings. I get up plenty early enough, but I still seemed to leave home at the last minute and either got to work just barely on time, or a minute or 2 late.

 But the word "Early" didn't seem like a very important thing to focus on for a whole year. As I thought about this, lots of other words came to mind that begin with the letter "E". So I decided to focus each month on a different word that begins with "E".

Here are some I've come up with so far:

Early
Enjoy
Endurance
Edify
Encourage
Excitement

During the month of January I concentrated on being early. Every work day morning I worked toward being 5 to 10 minutes early and I am doing this consistently now. But, being early for work is not the only thing that I should be early for. If I am early for church, I can use that time to pray and just sit in the Lord's presence. Being ready early when I am going somewhere with my hubby is a good thing for our marriage. Being early to prepare for anything helps with my stress level. This would apply to holidays, birthdays, doing taxes, paying bills, etc. You name it, Early is a good habit!

In February my word is "Enjoy". My plan is to strive to enjoy life. A few things I am currently enjoying: Listening to Music, Reading and watching our current Netflix binge each night with hubby. If I take time to think about it, I am so blessed in big and small ways and I want to enjoy life. Each month I write the word I am concentrating on in my planner.

I rarely do a blog post without pictures, but if I am going to be early for work, I have to stop now!

PS: The current Netflix binge at our house is "Murdoch Mysteries". After you watch a couple of them, you will be hooked. At this point, I'm not sure if Murdoch and Julia will EVER get together!

Too Blessed to Be Stressed!

As I write this post, I am hearing the continuous sound of rain drops falling on the roof and on the A/C-Heating unit outside the window. After being out of work for a week, driving into work in the pouring rain on a Monday morning is not sounding too good. But, one of my goals for 2015 is to think positively. Positive thoughts, positive words and no (less?) anxiety.  I want to be intentional about having peace in my life in small and large things.

This is my new planner for 2015. I really like it a lot. In fact I bought 6 while they were on sale at Family Christian Store for gifts. The things I like are that its small enough to fit in my pocketbook, it has a page for monthly goals, the whole month at a glance and each page has a Bible verse and a small motivational paragraph.

So, I had to share with you what the scripture and devotion for this week is:

"Papa God is our heavenly Father, and we can trust that He will get us safely where we need to be.  We don't need to worry, fret, or fear the what-ifs."

Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.  Psalm 56:3

I'll quote even further the devotion for the month of January ends with this:  "...By opening that station wagon door of trust and climbing in.  By making the choice to relax in the backseat, enjoy the journey, and let Papa drive." (emphasis mine)

Ok, so I will let Papa drive, and trust that He will get me to work safely.  But, if not, I know its His will!

Have a great Monday, the last one for 2014!