By Chris Sprinkle
I woke up on the morn of January 1, 2022, to the deathly sound of a bird slamming into our cozy cabin window. The fright it gave us was not as bad as looking out the window and seeing a beautiful creature, with its neck broken and blood oozing from its beak, laying in the snow. One of my daughters, whose heart is bigger for animals than for humans, ran out to rescue the bird. She picked it up, brushed off the snow from its feathers, and carried it in like a baby, dripping blood through the house. Another daughter immediately dashed into her room and shut the door to protect herself and her belongings from the blood. Voices rose as everyone shared their opinions about the bird: “Birds carry diseases! Its blood is all over your clothes! There’s feathers everywhere! Go bury it outside!”
As I walked into my room to continue writing my first journal entry of 2022, the thought hit me that this poor bird barely made it a few hours into 2022. Little did he know what his year was going to look like when he set out from his nest that morning. If I were superstitious, I wouldn’t have left my house that day—but I’m only a little stitious, so I went out skiing.
This incident left me thinking that I have NO clue what my 2022 year is going to look like. I make plans, I have ideas, I have goals and things that I’m looking forward to. But somehow, we all must live with goals and plans AND at the same time live today as if it were our last. Last night, as we headed for the finish line of 2021, my family and I spent an hour laughing and shouting out predictions for each person in 2022. Each of us had a silly prediction and a more serious one. When my turn came, my family started to vote on our silly prediction: “Will mom have any gray hair by the end of 2022?” But we couldn’t seem to come up with another prediction. “What are your goals, Mom?” my kids asked. “What do you want to accomplish? What do you want to show at the end of 2022?”
I couldn’t think of any goals. I’ve always been a person with hundreds of goals. So why was this year different? One of my daughters—the same daughter who has a bigger heart for animals than for humans—said, “Mom, maybe you should do something with your life and have some ambition and goals.” After a lot of laughs and a lot of thinking about it, I blurted out: “Could it be that I’m content with where I’m at and that my life is so full and rich right now that I don’t need to add anything else? I love being a mom. I love having time for my kids. I love working with Preston in ministry. I love cooking and planning trips with my family. I love sitting on the couch and listening to music. I’m happy! I love my life!”
So for this year, as I am a few hours into 2022, and I keep thinking about [GC3] that bird outside my window laying in the snow, I’m not going to have all the goals I usually set for myself, because I don’t know what tomorrow holds for me. In 2022, I will live more for today than for tomorrow. I will enjoy what God has placed before me and do it well. I will take each day as the greatest blessing, that I woke up today and that I get to see the people I care the most for. If God has other plans and goals for me, my hands are always open to Him and His will—but 2022 for me will be more about enjoying what God has given me than about searching for what God has for me.
If every day for the rest of my life looks like today, I will die a very happy woman!
Happy New Year to you all! And may you hear TODAY what God has to say to YOU specifically. Cheers, my friends!
