Part 8 - Showing Up with Your Whole Heart
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." - 1 Peter 2:9
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." - Colossians 3:17
"Each of you should use whatever gift you have to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." - 1 Peter 4:10
Insight
The year ahead isn't just something that will happen to you—it's something you get to participate in creating through your choices, your presence, your love, and your willingness to show up fully in the moments God places before you. Every day will present opportunities to engage with purpose, to bring your authentic self to relationships and responsibilities, to partner with God in His ongoing work of love and restoration in the world.
Participation in the year ahead begins with a fundamental shift in perspective: you're not just trying to survive or get through the next twelve months. You're not merely a passive recipient of whatever circumstances unfold. You're an active participant in God's story, invited to co-labor with Him, to love with intention, to serve with purpose, to show up with your whole heart even when—especially when—it feels risky or uncertain.
This past year has revealed things about your unique design, your particular gifts, your specific calling that perhaps you hadn't noticed before. The ways you naturally encourage others, the problems you feel drawn to solve, the injustices that stir your heart, the beauty you're compelled to create—these aren't random traits. They're clues to how God has designed you to participate in His kingdom work.
But participation in God's purposes doesn't require you to have extraordinary gifts or perfect qualifications. It simply requires you to bring whatever you have—your time, your attention, your resources, your presence—and offer it with love. The widow's mite, the boy's lunch, the alabaster jar of expensive perfume—none of these gifts were impressive by worldly standards, but all became powerful when offered with wholehearted generosity.
The year ahead will present countless opportunities for this kind of participation. Some will be obvious: volunteer opportunities, career decisions, major life choices. But most will be subtle: how you respond to the coworker having a difficult day, whether you pause to really listen when your family member needs to talk, how you treat the person serving you at the grocery store, what you do with the spare time you've been given.
Wholehearted participation also requires presence—the ability to be fully where you are rather than mentally rehearsing the past or anxiously planning the future. When you're present, you notice the divine appointments disguised as interruptions, the sacred moments hidden in ordinary conversations, the opportunities to love that might otherwise pass you by.
Fear will whisper that you're not qualified enough, experienced enough, spiritual enough to make a real difference. But God specializes in using ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. Your willingness to show up authentically, with both your gifts and your growing edges, often ministers more powerfully than polished perfection ever could.
Journaling Questions
What unique gifts, interests, or burdens has this past year revealed about how God might want to use you in the year ahead?
Where do you sense fear or insecurity holding you back from fully participating in opportunities God places before you?
How might focusing on presence and faithfulness in small moments prepare you for larger opportunities to serve and love?
What would change in your daily life if you approached each interaction as a potential opportunity to participate in God's love and kingdom work?
In what specific ways do you sense God inviting you to step up your level of engagement and participation in the year ahead?