Walk In Power.

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7

The opposite of love is fear. Fear drives so many of our thoughts and deci- sions. It is a potent emotion that causes us to do and say things that are out of alignment with who we want to be. It causes us to act in anger. Fear can make us timid and preoccupied; it might control our thoughts and keep us up at night or hold us back from forming deep friendships because we are afraid of being vulnerable. Fear keeps us stuck, but perfect love casts out fear. Here is the truth: There is nothing that can stand between you and what God has planned for you. God has given you a spirit of power, love, and self-control, and it is time to walk in this power that comes from the Holy Spirit. Love gives us the courage to exchange the intimidation of fear for an extraordinary life, full of passion and confidence to solve any problem that comes our way.

Love One Another.

Love your neighbor as yourself. Matthew 22:39

Author Brennan Manning brilliantly wrote, "The litmus test of our love for God is our love for our neighbor." Love is sobering because it asks us to care for all people; even our enemies are made in the image of God and are worthy of dignity and respect. Loving our enemies is not an endorsement of what they do, it is an affirmation of who they are—God's beloved. And mercy triumphs over judgment. This year we will practice loving people who annoy us, offend us, or overlook us. We'll not take ourselves so seriously but instead go out of our way to do kind things for other people, especially if they don't know it was us. Even when it takes some extra energy, we will celebrate each other's victories and carry one another's burdens. We will engage other people with open hearts and go to extremes to love well because we have a God who shows us how it's done.

Make Love Your Legacy.

Let all that you do be done in love. 1 Corinthians 16:14

Your legacy is what people remember when you leave a place. Whether that place is your kid's room at bedtime, your house each morning, or this earth. It's the stories your great-great grandkids will hear about you. Here is why this is so important: Love is contagious not just from person-to-person but also from generation to generation. It might be maddening to think about "leaving a legacy" when the little ones around you demand every ounce of your energy, but sometimes it is essential to look a little farther out, decide how you want to be remembered and what matters most to you, and take small intentional steps to make it happen. It's asking the question, "If I want love to be my legacy, how do I want to live today?” It doesn't have to be anything big; in fact, it usually starts in small ways. Clean up your home in love. Prepare dinner in love. Do your work in love. Play with LEGOs in love. Doing everything in love becomes a little more challenging with the harder aspects of daily life: Move through a traffic jam in love. Strongly disagree with someone in love. Discipline your kids in love, resolve conflict in love, engage in social media in love. These small moments ... This is where legacy is born.