One thing I know, is there is always more to know. I find this especially true when it comes to my faith. When I sat down to write this note to you, these are the different scenarios that God brought to mind for me to share:

1. I remember when I first walked into a church and talked to these old people (probably the same age I am now which is NOT old) and them sharing with me that they’ve been reading their Bible most of their life. I found this so odd. Why would you read the same book, especially one as long as the Bible, over and over. Well, 2 days ago I started reading the book of Matthew (1st book in the new testament) for like my 20th time, and guess what… I’m still learning more things and I still love reading it.

2. You’ve probably heard me talk about how much I love our retreats. I’ve been leading them for years and I still learn so many new things about myself, others and especially about God. During our Italy retreat our group was being led through a time in prayer. Jon, who was leading this prayer session, prompted us to think deeply about different situations and about where Jesus was during those situations. I have been through many prayer sessions like this and have even led prayer sessions like this, but this time God revealed something so new and it made every part of my body smile. If I’m being honest, when the prayer session began I remember being a bit distracted because I’d done this before, but God, because of His love for me, took me into His presence and whispered new Truths into my heart. Hopefully, one day I will see you at a retreat and you will experience something powerful like this with God.

3. One day when I sat in one of my favorite places in nature I asked God what He wanted the theme for my upcoming retreat to be about and here is what I heard inside my heart, “Too many of my children are walking around believing lies and they need to push them out so my Truth can come in.” I’ve loved leading people through a process of discovering lies, replacing them with Truth and experiencing Freedom – “You will know the Truth and the Truth will set you Free” (John 8:32). One of the reasons I love teaching so much is because I also learn so much. As I’ve walked others through this process again and again, I continue to uncover the lies that are still a part of my thinking.

I don’t want my life to become stale. I don’t want to ever think I’ve reached my peak. I want to be open to try new things. I don’t want fear to keep me from doing anything that I feel God is calling me towards. I know that success is achieved through obedience to God’s calling, not the results that come from my obedience. I know that I am fully known and fully loved by the One who created me. I know that because He loves me, He will challenge me to continue to learn and grow into the person He created me to be – and this excited me.

I know God has so much more to show me in 2025 and I will not let the “world” or the devil get in the way of what God has for me.

When I turn to my Bible, He will show me a new dimension of His love.

When I lead retreats He will continue to embrace me with His love.

When I sit with Him, He will show me lies and pour His Truths over those lies so that the freedom, joy, peace and love that I walk in each day will grow even stronger.