Throw YOUR plans for 2020 out the window. No, I haven’t fallen and hit my head, and yes, you can still use your daily planners. This is what the Holy Spirit has been downloading in me for the coming year. It has been strong and persistent. For 2020, whatever it is that we have planned or envisioned, it’s too small. Simply put, God wants to blow our minds! Not just my mind or Elaine’s mind, but this is for every woman. He has set the atmosphere to display Shekinah Glory, which is a visible manifestation of God on earth.
Don’t brashly announce what you’re going to do tomorrow; you don’t know the first thing about tomorrow. Proverbs 27:1 MSG
A new year and a new decade are upon us. In the natural, the start of a new year gives way to the idea of reinventing whatever we dislike about our life. On January 1st we get a clean slate. The concept reminds me of when I was baptized, and I thought when I came out of the water I would automatically be transformed. Spoiler alert: transformation is not automatic. Anything we want to reinvent or transform takes our cooperation and most importantly it takes work.
Why do you think so many New Year’s resolutions fail? They are cute on paper, but how often do we count the costs? Usually we get weary before we see results. So how do we keep the momentum going after January? We keep the momentum going by defining our why. Jesus loved to speak in parables about planting, which is so accurate. We often see our reinvention or transformation as instant, but we are just like planted seeds. Most of the hard work takes place underground where it looks like nothing is happening.
My sisters in Christ, this coming year we are called to take more territory for the kingdom of God. This year, we are getting Lasik surgery from the best in the business and it is going to restore our spiritual vision. My spirit is leaping at the thought of 20/20 vision in the spirit –to be able to see clearly the plans that God has for us and for our sight and vision to be on one accord. He is ready, willing, and able to give us these things, but we’ve got to be ready to receive them. What He won’t do is force His blessings on us.
The key word for Transforming Love Ministries’ She Steps Forward Conference in March 2020 is grace. While I was reviewing the word grace in the dictionary and in the Bible, I found that in Hebrew it literally means favor. She Steps Forward into this decade with Favor! This is a word to all of us because we are all daughters of the King of Kings. This new decade, 2020, is the start of something spiritually profound and life altering. We will walk in His grace and favor.
If ever there were a time for open heavens to manifest in our lives, it’s now. God wants to fulfill the promises He has given us in His word, but we’ve got to be willing to be obedient to His instructions. Faith is going to be imperative this year because of what God is going to do. And it means we must trust Him fully. Not just on Sundays or when we feel like it’s going towards our plan, but every day, every way, and in every place. We’ve got to be willing to surrender it ALL to Him. He can’t heal what we won’t reveal. I know your saying, “God knows it all”, but it is a test of our obedience to see if we are going to give it to Him freely.
I challenge you to write down five things that you don’t want to carry anymore. You don’t have to share it with anyone, but you need to put it down because you don’t want it to block God’s favor. There is nothing too big or too small for Him. We can make a grocery list of New Year’s resolutions, so why not write down five things to help you grow closer to God?
Once you’ve got them down, look over them and pray about why you were holding these five things. Why do you want to be released from them? And then, ask the Holy Spirit what He wants to do with them. For some, the answer might come right away. For some, it might sound like chirping crickets. Or some may hear that certain things will not be removed. If the Holy Spirit will not remove something, ask Him to guide you in what you are supposed to learn through it. It is in these times that I always look at Paul and his thorn.
Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 NLT
Sometimes, God needs us to get to what’s on the other side of the pain because from His vantage point, He can understand how it is working for a greater good.
This word is confirmation that God can and will use us because of His grace (aka favor) no matter how weak, how broken, or how damaged we think we are. God can place His best testimonies in those who do not stand a chance without Him. We’ve got to stop disqualifying ourselves. We are called to be transparent in what we must overcome to reach those who are still lost in the world.
I get this supernatural rush of excitement when I think about what the Holy Spirit is revealing to me about the coming year. And, it’s even better because He’s saying it is not exclusively for Katrina, share it with your sisters, I want everyone to be a part of this. Ladies, God is ready to show up in our life like we’ve never seen before and use us for His glory. So, I would like to not just wish everyone a Happy New Year or just blessings for a new decade, but congratulations on stepping into the favor of God’s 20/20 vision for your life.
By Katrina Hodges
Please note all scripture was taken from The Message and NLT.
The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.