I have always had a love/hate relationship with January. I love that it is a month of renewal, but I hate that it's filled with fitful weather. It would be so much easier if I could commit to my long list of resolutions under clear skies and easy breezes. Instead, it's cold when it's clear and the wind cuts through me like a knife. When the weather is warm, it is also rainy.

A few years ago I decided to stop making resolutions. I lacked the commitment necessary to stick with them. Usually, by March first, I'd even forgotten that I 'd made them. Instead, I started asking myself, "What do I want to do this year?" Instead of resolving to lose weight or exercise, I began thinking of fun things I wanted to learn. Learning to be a better cook led me to make better choices for what I ate and I felt better, even if I didn't lose weight.

As January 2024 comes to a close, I'm trying to look forward to February. It's a short month, Mardi Gras is in full swing, I'll have a birthday around the middle of the month, and I'm pretty sure my bestie just hinted that she's planning a visit near the end of the month.  And while I love the still beauty of a gray, foggy day, too many can drag me down. 

And then I feel like I'm just wandering in the wilderness.

In "A Year of Slowing Down," Alan Falding refers to the Children of Israel's forty years in the wilderness as "a long path". They still reached their destination, it just took longer than everyone thought it would. Writing and publishing have been the same for me.

Life has been the same, too.

When I look back to that day when the manager of the grocery store where I worked told me that I was his new head bookkeeper, I didn't know I would one day have an accounting degree or hold the job title of Senior Accountant. Yet the long path I've taken over the past twenty-five years has brought me to exactly that.

When it comes to writing, I constantly put everything in God's hands. What other choice do I think I have if I want to do His work? Everything moves in His own good time, for His purpose. 

Yet, there are days when I feel like I'm standing in a foggy wilderness, unsure of which direction I should go.

And so, I pray.

Thank You, God, for taking me down the long path!