The Big 3-0

Hello, friends!

First of all, thank you all so much for the well wishes and happy birthday greetings I received yesterday. It was definitely a great day and I'm excited to now have entered my fourth decade on Earth. =0). Here's to (at least) 30 more, right?

One of the things that I've noticed about myself these past few years is that because my birthday is so close to the New Year, I don't actually consider the New Year a really big deal from a resolution/get my life in order standpoint. I consider my birthday to be the real start of a new year for me. Maybe it has something to do with my Chinese roots and my birthday being a midway point between the calendar year and the Lunar New Year too. I don't know. What I do know, is that this year is going to be great.

A friend of mine introduced me to the idea of having each year be the year of "something." It could be a word or phrase but some way that you are going to frame the upcoming year. I like that idea because it allows me to focus and build my life around a common theme. Last year was the year of "Rejoicing." I tried to focus on seeing God's hand in everything and rejoicing in His goodness instead of my own failures. Given everything that happened last semester, I'm glad that I was choosing rejoicing instead of criticism because if not, that would have been a little rough.

This year, after spending some time hanging out with Jesus, looking over the year that was, and generally taking stock of life, I've decided that this year is going to be ther year of "listening and dependence." My original plan was for this year to be the year of "fitness." I was going to get in shape physically, emotionally, relationally, mentally, and spiritually. But, as I spent more time looking back on the year that was, I saw that one thing that was really lacking from my life last year was intentional time depending on Jesus. I love systems and structures in my life. They give me a sense of peace and a sense of balance because I know what is coming next. The flat side to that is that oftentimes, I put more trust in the system than I do on hearing from Jesus and having him guide my steps. This year, I hope to correct that a little bit.

How does that look? At this point, I have no idea. The only thing that I really know for sure is that it is going to mean more prayer. The need for more prayer seems to be a constant theme in my life. Some seasons are better than others. This last season wasn't great in that department.

So, friends, here's hoping that 30 is a banner year for me in terms of ministry, family life, and my walk with Jesus. I'm so thankful to have friends like you who will be walking with me along this journey.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam