2024 Word of the Year
Have you ever chosen one word to represent your whole year? It’s hasn’t been an annual practice of mine, though I do recall doing it one year as it related to something else in my life, more than a decade ago. I wasn’t writing seriously then, because I was working full-time. Earlier in December 2023, a group of friends and fellow writers met to discuss this very topic. I decided to seek God for a word that would be appropriate for 2024. He faithfully answered my prayer and I created the collage above to represent the areas of my life that will be included.
Steadfast is an older word, and is not used in common speech or every day dialogue. It is a wonderfully complex word that touches every facet of life. To be resolute, dutiful, and unwavering means to stand strong, stay focused, and faithful to what God is asking me to do this year. That is represented by the pictures within the collage above.
My relationship with God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) comes first, and as such, I must be steadfast in my pursuit of Him through the reading of His Word, given to us in the Holy Bible. Not just reading, but studying and applying the treasures gleaned to my own life. It also means being unwavering in my consistency and faithfulness to prayer in all its facets, including listening for Holy Spirit’s still small voice. This has been difficult because I live with chronic severe pain and fatigue. Often, I start praying at night, or laying on my bed to give my legs some rest in the day, and fall asleep in mid-prayer. Nevertheless, I will persevere and push through until this becomes sporadic and/or disappears.
The tasks and assignments God gives me often require that I go against the current politically, socially and/or denominationally correct ideologies and terminologies. Obedience is key, and I trust that His words will find the minds and hearts they are intended for so that those people may find healing, wholeness, love, healing, and support within the pages of the books I write, and the social media content and blogs that I post.
This year is a blank canvass full of possibilities. It’s my job to create as Holy Spirit leads and guides. He and I partner in creativity through the gift of imagination and storytelling. I love to teach through fiction. It’s effectively subtle and easier for a reader to learn through my main character’s experiences. They see and feel everything my character does and, given I write primarily contemporary or historical fiction. Even in my speculative fiction serial stories, there are things to learn, hidden within.
I must focus at all times on the tasks at hand; prioritize which comes first and so on, and set the necessary deadlines. Distractions are my nemeses. I cannot allow them to pull me away and waste precious energy. It’s a favourite tactic the enemy uses and one I will fight against with the helmet of salvation, shield of faith, and sword of the Spirit.
Standing firmly in one spot in the natural is impossible for me because I live with spastic Cerebral Palsy and have zero free-standing balance. In the Spirit, it is the exact opposite. So, I will stand and hold ground, advance down the path God has assigned to me. My race is unique… so is yours. Comparison causes us to leave our own lane and interfere in another’s. This isn’t beneficial to either runner and the risk of creating a fall or delay is very real. I will stay in my lane and run my race to the best of my ability with God’s help, wisdom, and guidance.
An author writes. It is not an option not to write, it’s part of who I am. So, in 2024, I have three works-in-progress (WIPs), and they are in three different genres within Christian fiction, or faith fiction, as some are calling it now. All three books will be self-published this year at different times—so stay tuned for more updates, announcements, and surprises.
Finally, I must leave my success as an author in God’s hands. Yes, I will continue to learn and grow in marketing my work more effectively, but I will not allow my emotions to be swayed by stats, whether it’s number of readers or numbers of books sold in paperback and ebook. Neither will I react to book reviews that are negative or outright attacks. It hasn’t happened to me yet, but I have no illusions that it will, as my name and work becomes familiar to a wider audience across the globe. This is a marathon, not a sprint; I need to find my pace and settle in to its flow.
So here’s to 2024—a brand new year stretches before me, and I will embrace every moment of each day. The bonus of being in my mid-50s is I know life has no guarantees. So, I’ve learned to treasure the little miracles I discover within the seconds and moments that make up an hour, and the hours that complete each day I am blessed to draw breath.
