ONEWORD 2022 Intentional
Back in September, God began to place a ONEWORD for 2022 on my heart. He did this by presenting the word through different avenues – preaching, reading, and even devotions. Today I want to share about two books that confirmed this word – intentional in my heart.
It’s time to read this book
Angela Donadio sent me her latest book back in 2019. She offered it to anyone who responded to an IG post; no strings attached. However, I offered that I would also write a review. That book, Fearless, sat on my desk until last fall. It even made it through a physical move and still ended up on my desk, staring intently at me all that time. “When are you going to read this?”, it posed. Finally, God said, it’s time to read that book.
It turned out to be about fearless women in the Bible; Jocabed and her midwives in Egypt, Rahab, Abigail, The Samaritan Woman, and Priscilla. Surprising women that we often think very little about. But they had a message for me… and you. They were not only fearless but also intentional. I was already mulling this word around in my mind. So when I read about these women, I saw the intentionality in their actions.
Things That Pointed to My OneWord – Intentional
Jochebed took a strong stand and changed history. But first, her midwives were fearless and made an intentional decision to defy Pharoah and save the babies. Jochebed was fearless and was intentional when she hid Moses and then placed him in the basket and into the Nile River. This small, intentional act changed life forever for the Israelites. (Read more in Exodus 2)
Rahab (Joshua 2) a prostitute, the lowest of low, decided she would deceive the men of Jericho. She hid the Hebrew spies and intentionally lied about their whereabouts. That took a lot of courage. This fearless act caused the walls of Jericho to fall; but she was saved and in the end, her name is in the genealogy to Christ (Matthew 1) AND in the Hall of Faith (Hebrews 11, verses 30-31)
Abigail stood fearless as she intentionally defied her husband by taking food and supplies to David and his men. (Read more in 1 Samuel 25) She listened to God’s voice, became fearless, and thus, brought peace for Nabal’s family and servants. The end was not good for Nabal but Abigail married King David.
Angela speaking of Abigail says,
“The more we trust God’s character and know his heart in a situation, the more we will act in confidence.”
Fearless – Ordinary Women of the Bible Who Dared to do Extraordinary Things, Angela Dinadio
Wisdom Leads the Way
It takes wisdom to know the will of God. Wisdom gives us the words to say and the courage to take action. The Apostle James tells us about wisdom in his letter to the scattered twelve tribes of Israel,
But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full or mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.
James 3:17-18
This is a perfect picture of Abigail. It can be a picture of us as well, all we have to do is ask for it.
I anyone of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
James 1:5
I’ll let you read the book to learn about the others. Just know that these women have encouraged my heart to know that I, too, can live fearless and with intention. “They showed me how to stand out with confidence (which was my ONEWORD last year) in a fog of uncertainty. They displayed what it looks like to stand strong as a source of immeasurable value in God’s kingdom.” They were grounded in God’s Word. (as Michele wrote about in her series, 2022 Healthy Spiritual Habits)
Find Angela at her blog Angela Donadio. or her Podcast, Make Like Matter where she speaks to our courage on Fearless Fridays.
A Book on Finding our Vision and How to Follow Through
At the end of the year, I received an e-mail filled with books you might want to read. Then it offered them all for free. One of them was Vision, Intent, Means ~ A Model for Personal Development in Christ. That word INTENT jumped right off the page for me. I downloaded the book immediately into my kindle and began reading. It’s a quick read on the V.I.M. model.
Each Section ended with 3-5 personal questions that would help you nail down your own life vision, figure out what to do and how to do it. While it is mainly for your spirituality, I pointed to what my desires for my life are and how to work toward making them a reality. It’s a quick read; likely you can read it in one sitting. It may take more time to journal out the questions and come to your own vision statement. It is only available on Kindle but is a mere $.99. It’s worth the buck!
David J Smith is the founder of Master Builder Coach Academy.
My Vision
Sorry, I don’t have this fleshed out yet. Come back in a a few days.
Living Intentionally,
–Mandy
My Themed daily posts for February 2022 will be published on Instagram. It will be a quick study of Psalm 119 called I {heart} God’s Word.
You can download a reading plan pdf or phone wallpaper
Pastor’s Wife (retired) & Chronic Pain Warrior blogs about how to make it through anything by relating her own life experiences to her writing. She is passionate about her love for the Lord and desires to spread that passion to others. She has a great desire to encourage women who are following behind her.
