A friend of
mine shared an email with me recently. The email was from her principal and
contained a short YOUTUBE video about a motivational project known as ONE WORD.
In addition to a ‘project’, “One Word” is also a book written by Mike Ashcraft,
senior pastor at Port City Community Church in Wilmington, NC.
The concept
of Ashcraft’s “One Word” campaign is for individuals to pick one word that will
inspire them all year. As Ashcraft points out on his website and in his book,
one word is more, simple and feasible to stay focused on than a list of goals,
objectives or resolutions. He believes that picking just one word can bring your
life, career, family and the way you live into perspective and keep you focused
on what matters most.
This concept
got my attention immediately and I knew the exact ‘one word’ I needed to choose
for my own one word journey…my one word is “TODAY”.
You see, I
have spent most of my adult life thinking about ‘tomorrow’, ‘next week’, ‘next
month’, ‘next year’. I focus on so many future events and I analyze so many ‘what
if questions’ that I rob myself of the daily blessings I should be enjoying.
I focused for months on whether I
would ever get my degree and then once I did, I began to focus on whether I
would ever find a job. Now I have a job and I am focusing on ‘how will I teach
all these standards’ and ‘how will my students perform on these new tests’.
It’s
overwhelming to live in the future. When I investigated this ‘One Word’
campaign on my own, I evaluated all my goals, hopes, worries and plans in
search of my ‘one word’. I realized that I could not mentally process and
ponder all the issues and goals I have at one time. I chose the word, ‘TODAY’
to remind me to focus only on what is happening each day. To make my plans,
face my fears and address what is occurring in my life on a daily basis.
‘TODAY’ is
liberating. ‘TODAY’, I can handle. ‘TODAY’ I can make a difference. Growing up
in church, I have heard the Bible verse from Matthew 6:34 quoted a thousand
times, “Take therefore no thought for the
morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.” But
trying to actually ‘not think about tomorrow’ is difficult for me. I am a
planner, I like to know what’s going on and I want to do things right and reach
my goals.
I am ecstatic
to finally have a job teaching third graders, but I am also nervous. I really
care. I want to do a great job. I want to be a positive influence. I want to
see them succeed. I know that obsessing and worrying will do nothing to
accomplish any of my goals. It will only make me anxious and fearful, two
emotions with which, unfortunately I have great experience.
I am choosing
to hang on to ‘TODAY’ when I feel overwhelmed. ‘TODAY’ will be my mantra, my
one word. I will teach ‘TODAY’. I will do my best ‘TODAY’. I will enjoy and
embrace ‘TODAY’. There will be times when I might cry ‘TODAY’ or feel
frustrated ‘TODAY’, but I know I can be victorious ‘TODAY’. Tomorrow, next
week, next month…well I really can’t focus on the future if I am giving all my
efforts to the present-- and the present will need all my efforts.
This is going
to be a tough challenge for me because I am by nature impatient and I’ve always
wanted a crystal ball (although I would be too scared to look into it). So if
you see me fretting or notice me getting off track, take a second to simply say,
“Shelly TODAY” and you will help me greatly. I know I can handle ‘TODAY’ and if
I can stay there I can be exactly what God wants me to be each and every TODAY.
