Count the Fruit

I love a new year. 

I love cleaning things out and organizing them and starting fresh. 

I love thinking about my goals and dreams and plans for the new year. 

After Christmas I am ready to be done with the year and start 

dreaming and planning for the new year

BUT yesterday I was listening to the amazing and awesome 

Jess Connolly on Instagram stories

and she said something that gave me pause. 

(If you don't follow her, you totally should! 

She's an amazing author, blogger, has an awesome podcast) 

She talked about "counting the fruit" from a year before planning ahead for the new year. 

"Counting the fruit" is just thinking about and thanking God for 

anything you are thankful for, for any way that God provided,

for any answered prayers, for any way He showed up- big or small. 

The idea comes from John 15:1-8 where it says....

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.  He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.  If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

And I LOVE this idea so and am going to work at making this a practice in my life!

Jess said....

If you want to go into 2019 full of purpose and God's power,
you've got to leave 2018 full of gratitude and thankfulness.
Even if you think it was a hard year.
Even if it was a hard year.
Even if really broken things happened.

And to that I say AMEN!

To help write those fruits down, I created a little printable to make it easy. 

If you'd like to join me, you can print out a copy of both HERE. 

Living Intentionally in 2012

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the beginning of a new year!

 It's like a blank slate stretched out before me. 

A brand new box of crayons, freshly sharpened.

New beginnings and a fresh start filled with so many possibilities! 

Here are some of my goals for the coming year:

My verse{s} for this year are Philippians 3:12-16 {The Message}

I'm not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don't get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I've got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward—to Jesus. I'm off and running, and I'm not turning back. So let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you'll see it yet! Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it.

What about you? 

What do you hope to do, achieve, become this coming year?

Do you have a verse to focus on this year?

If so, I'd love to hear it!