We’re already at the end of the first month of the new year. How are you doing with your goals? Are you living bolder, better, brighter for God in the new year? Accomplishing everything you could have dreamed?
Or are you, like me, realizing that God’s plans for you mostly involve seemingly small, mundane, ordinary things?
I’m learning that progress doesn’t happen overnight and that sometimes the hardest part of the Christian life is trusting that God is working in you even when it doesn’t feel like it. Trusting that He is in control of every small task that comes into your life and every small worry that crosses your mind.
Big goals are great, but don’t be discouraged if you aren’t accomplishing the lofty things you had hoped. Simply move forward into the next month, one step at a time, seeking to live for God in all things, small and big, and look for the little victories that are evidence of a greater work in your life.
This Month’s Devotions
I’m following the yearly reading plan laid out in the back of my Bible. I started late, but just doubled up a couple of days to catch up and now I’m on track. I just finished reading through the Bible, but I’ve never actually read the whole thing in a year, as the first time it took me a little longer. We’ll see what happens.
Some truths from this month:
*God will always provide what we need, and even more than we need (from Exodus 4-6)
*God is terrifying in anger, but that anger will never be used against us- only for us (from Exodus 15)
*God knows what He’s doing when He prompts us to do certain things in our lives…why would we question Him? He is the all-powerful God of the universe and knows so much better than us
*Equal treatment for all people is a very important part of God’s law system (Exodus 23:1-9), yet equality for ourselves should not be our focus; instead we should focus on serving others (Matthew 20:25-28)
Bloggings
This month I started a series on dating in the teen years (more specifically, why I’ve chosen not to). There were three installments:
God’s Purpose for Romance
God’s Purpose for Singleness
Avoiding Drama and Temptationfrom other blogs…
From Mirriam Neal: become (super inspiring) and a super helpful hack for fixing flat characters
Observer > Critic (this sounds like a very hard but also very worthwhile mindset shift)
Even though getting old isn’t even on my radar yet, I loved this post: Your “Age” is Defined by Your Attitude, Not a Number
7 Tips for Victorian Happiness (this post is why I followed this blog)
If you were wondering about my political thoughts, other Grace says it perfectly
How to Find Time to Read More. Not sure if this was helpful or not…but definitely entertaining!
Readings
- Till We Have Faces: 4 stars. Obviously very good, since it’s C.S. Lewis, but I felt like I didn’t quite get the point of it or something. Probably need to read it again.
- The Rose and the Balloon: 3 stars. Imperfect, since it’s a self-published book by a young author, but a cute story and a light, quick read.
- Interrupted: 4.5 stars. I loved this book so much! Probably my favorite of the month. It was such a sweet romance with a deeper message, completely clean, and a Christian perspective.
- Little Women, Little Men, Jo’s Boys: 4-5 stars. Rereads all, and all just as good as the first time 😉
A few articles I enjoyed:
- I found this article by John Piper, discussing how Christians should live under Trump, so, so helpful.
- Also helpful: 4 Ways to Be Actively Pro-Life
A final note: if you haven’t discovered The Babylon Bee yet, you’re missing out. It’s Christian News Satire from Christians and as long as you don’t take any of it too seriously, it’s really funny.
Watchings
- Sherlock, season 4: 5 stars. Oh my goodness. This season tossed my heart around and made me laugh and cry and scream and if you haven’t yet watched this show I think it is literally the best TV show I’ve ever seen and you need to watch it.
- Becoming Jane: 4 stars. This was a really good movie! (Although sad…so don’t expect a happy chick-flick ending.) Would probably recommend to ages 14 and up because of a bit of content.
- Les Miserables: 5 stars. So, so, so good!! I can’t believe it took me this long to watch it. Again, some content, but the scenes are easily fast-forwardable. The music is incredible and the cast is amazing and there is lots of food for thought as well.
Listenings
- Up in Flames: I recently discovered Ruelle, an alternative singer with some really great songs. You might especially like her if you’re a fan of Twenty One Pilots or similar bands.
- Hamilton: Introduced my sister to Hamilton this month! (She loves it.) If you haven’t listened to it yet, please do! It’s amazing.
- The Music of Jane Austen: Loving this as something to listen to while I do homework or write.
- Covers Vol. 1: This has been my go-to album lately when I don’t know what to listen to. Evynne Hollens is amazing and every song on here is so good.
- Age of Minority: This is a podcast started by Jaquelle Crowe, editor of The Rebelution, and her dad. They talk about different topics related to being a Christian teen in today’s world, as well as lots of fun topics as well. So fun to listen to and highly, highly recommended! Find it here.
Upcoming in February
- A continuation of my series on dating, discussing how to develop your convictions, what to do if someone asks you out, being content to be single, and more.
- A review of Sherlock seasons 1-4. (And yes, I know I keep promising this and it doesn’t happen…I will get it done at some point!)
How was your January? Did you read, watch, or listen to anything amazing? What are you excited for in February? Tell me in the comments!
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love, grace
True and Pure 