I am so excited to be introducing Katy Kauffman to you! I met Katy at a recent writers workshop and have been blessed to have a growing friendship with her. Her bio is below and I hope you’ll check it out.

Last week I shared my word of the year – Ponder. This week, Katy is joining us on Living Holy to share hers. Enjoy!!

My Word for 2017: Strength

by Katy Kauffman

Do you stress easily? Before the new year started, I thought about all of the projects and deadlines that 2017 will hold. I felt stress building up on the inside, but the encouragement and prayers of family and friends turned Oh, no! into Oh, yay! I understood that I didn’t have to think about everything that had to be done. I could focus on one project at a time and enjoy working on it. As peace replaced stress, I realized I needed another spiritual reality—strength.

I don’t know what projects and dreams you have for 2017, but I know that each of us will eventually run out of steam if we try to walk through this year in our own strength. Deadlines, struggles, and emergencies can chip away at our power and confidence. That is, unless we depend on God for unfailing strength.

Deborah was a woman who walked in the strength and confidence of God. As a judge of the Israelites before they had a king, she listened to the people’s problems and spoke to them on God’s behalf (Judges 4:4-5). One message she sent to a man named Barak probably sapped his strength.

God had called on Barak to gather an army of ten thousand men to face their oppressive neighbors, the Canaanites, who had mistreated them for twenty years. His Oh, no! response would only turn into an Oh, yay! if Deborah accompanied him to battle. Although she warned him that his glory in victory would be diminished if she went with him, Barak insisted. So she went. In response to God’s gift of victory, she sang a song of praise, and one verse in particular stood out to me recently. It is a call to every one of our souls, now and throughout the new year. A call to arms. A call to follow God, walk in His ways, and rest on His promises. Deborah sang …

O my soul, march on in strength!
Judges 5:21 NKJV

No matter what challenges we face, how many deadlines are written on our calendars, or how many surprises ambush us in 2017, we can march on in strength because we belong to the God of perfect strength. Look to Him—The everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, [who] neither faints nor is weary … He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength (Isaiah 40:28-29 NKJV).

Lift your wings and glide on the wind of God’s power. Rest in His love for you, and depend on Him to help you with every adventure and challenge in the new year. His strength never runs out. God is built to handle every challenge and problem, and He knows how to work good out of every situation. He will direct your steps if you look to Him and empower you to make His name known and to share His love with those around you.

March forward in God’s strength. #strength #wordoftheyear2017 Click To Tweet

Strength. I don’t know what your one “word” is for 2017, but I am looking forward to seeing how mine plays out in the new year. My desire is to march forward in God’s strength, seeking His face and doing His will. I hope you will join me! Tell us in the comments below how you’ve seen God give you strength in the past, and share what “word” you will strive for in the new year. Happy 2017, and may God bless you with His strength!

 

Katy Kauffman is the award-winning author of two Bible studies for women, 2 Timothy: Winning the Victory and Faith, Courage, and Victory. She is also a co-founder of Lighthouse Bible Studies and an editor and a designer of Refresh Bible Study Magazine. She loves hot chocolate on cold winter days, and she makes her home near Atlanta, Georgia.