Sunday, January 05, 2014

Recapitulation and Resolution

Two of my favorite words: recapitulation. resolution. If you're a music nerd like myself and my colleagues, you are quite familiar with these terms in reference to a sonata and a cadence, respectively. In music world, "recapitulation" just means bringing back and restating earlier bits of music as they were originally heard, sometimes slightly altering them; "resolution" means when all the chaos/activity/imbalance that has occurred so far in the music is finally brought back to "home base" (to tonic, to the major I chord, whatever you want to say) and everything feels settled.

It being the first week of January, I (along with millions of other humans, I'm sure) have been doing a lot of recapping and resolving. It amazes me the things that have changed in the past four years (my whole time in college plus a little).

My 2010 resolutions:
1. Read through the Bible- select one verse a day from what I read to put into action.
2. Grow in Christ and produce fruit for Him.
3. Lose 15 pounds.
4. Exercise three times a week.
5. Wear my retainer 5 nights a week.
6. Trust more.
7. Pray more.
8. Love more.
9. Get all A's and B's.
10. Put God first always.

go ahead and take a laughter break.
2010 recap:
A. I focused on boys wayyyy too much.
1. I didn't read through the Bible and the verse-a-day thing didn't last to the end of January even.
2. I definitely grew but am still unsure how much fruit I produced. 
3. HA! College hit.
4. DOUBLE HA!
5. yeah… no.
6. This I definitely did and it was hard and worth it.
7. See number 6.
8. See number 6.
9. Well I did it, but I question its usefulness.
10. It didn't happen. But I learned a lot.

My 2011 Resolution:
To give God more of me.
That's it, just that one thing. But I realized on January First, thanks to my dear friend Susan Green (now Lewis) that "[People who are close to God] don't have any more of God than I do, but God may have more of them than He has of me." It's stuck with me to this day and it changed my life a little bit.

2011 recap:
basically everything somehow changed this year. not that I suddenly became an awesome Christian, but I slowly gave God more of myself and it became the most beautiful choice I could've made.

My 2012 Resolutions:
-Share the comfort God covers me with, with others. (2 Corinthians 1:3-5)
-Implement the characteristics, attitudes, and actions of Proverbs 31:10-30 in my life.
-Feel with others
-Flee from immorality, greed, lust, dishonesty, anger, ungratefulness, gossip, rage, bitterness, malice, and quarrels.
-Run to Christ's love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal. 5:20-21)
-Pursue Christ and His righteousness, faith, charity, and peace with those that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:22)
-Fill my mind with things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. (Phil 4:8)
-Strive for better than "good enough" (Col. 1:21-22)
-Leave behind mediocrity.
-Trust His guiding hand to take care of me (Isaiah 41:13)
-Not immediately run and tell others things He whispers to me, but store them up and ponder them in my heart. (Luke 2:19)

2012 recap: the best year of my life so far. Making these decisions to CHANGE my actions and habits and base the change on Biblical standards was joy-inducing and invigorating and freeing. I didn't achieve all of these every second of every day, but God gave me the strength, grace, and courage needed to live for Him more wholeheartedly than ever before.

My 2013 Resolutions:
1. Be more sincere, genuine, loyal, and intentional in ALL friendships.
2. Take every thought captive in accordance with His Word, and dwell on true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, praiseworthy, excellent things (2 Cor. 10:3-5, Phil. 4:8)
3. Memorize 12 Bible verses/passages- one per month. (Ps. 119:11, 2 Tim. 3:16-17)
4. Rejoice always (Phil. 4:4, 1 Thess. 5:16)
5. Pray continually (1 Thess. 5:17)
6. Be more respectful and honoring of my body, God's temple. (1 Cor. 6:15-20)
7. NOT GROW WEARY or lose heart (Heb. 12:1-6)
8. Live at peace with all and be holy, so that people will see the Lord and not miss out on His grace (Heb. 12:14-15)
9. Be thankful. (the Bible)
10. TRUST. (Prov. 3:5-7, Ps. 22:8)

2013 recap: big whopping failure. for a while I was doing a great job. then it became just that, a job. somewhere along the way I started listening to, considering, and believing Satan's lies. It was a slow, unnoticeable fade, that didn't come to a head until the last day of the year, when God finally jerked me awake. I am grateful for the lessons I learned and the friendships I invested in- I'm not saying everything in the year was a failure. But spiritually, I gave up and missed out on a lot. Here's to hoping 2013 never repeats itself.

My 2014 Resolutions:
1. Read the Chronological Bible daily. Because I need Him and I am desperately hungry.
2. Replace negative thoughts and self-talk with positive. Because I am His treasure and I am not called to live defeated.
3. Watch less TV/movies/Netflix- Read more books. Because I'm done with laziness of mind and body.
4. Take the stairs and park farther away. Because I want to be healthy and able to make the most of this life He's given me.
5. Learn to knit or crochet. For fun. :)
6. Get a Paul and a Timothy. Because I need to be poured into and pour myself out regularly.
7. Learn to save money. Stop using my credit card. Tithe and save. The end. Because "my" money is not mine.
8. Write more letters and build others up. Because words are dangerous and hearts are precious, and people need to be encouraged and loved fiercely and visibly.
9. Stop biting nails. Because you aren't a child anymore, Becca.
10. Expand my vocabulary. Because life needs to be beautiful and there are so many beautiful, unused words.
11. Become an explorer of the world. Use and complete the "How to Be an Explorer of the World" book. Because it's fun, memorable, and you are SO. GOOD. at exploring, Becca.
12. Memorize Scripture. Because I don't have enough of Him in my heart.
13. Believe and trust. Because it's biblical.
14. Seek Him first.

Stay tuned for the next eleven months to see how the 2014 recap goes. ;)
Also, please keep me accountable in these resolutions. Seriously, I don't care if you secretly creep my blog or if you're my mom or my best friend or a stranger who stumbled here. Call me, text me, comment, write me a note- ASK ME HOW MY RESOLVE IS. Because I'm human and weak and need God-reminders from you humans. :)

Here's to 2014 being different and resolvedly HIS.

the loss

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