Everything is always changing.

This is the reality in which we all live.

Despite this certainty, change still surprises us.

When we consider our My One Word journeys, we should anticipate, and even learn to welcome, change over the year. While our words provide a consistent lens, the view they provide will shift over the twelve months to varying degrees.

We face all sorts of circumstances that we did not see coming. There have been changes in relationships that we could not have predicted. These things have an effect on our One Words because they have had an effect on our lives.

For some, this is understandably frustrating. After all, our words are not the result of happenstance. We chose them with purpose, with particular hopes and specific intentions in mind.

We want so badly for our One Word to lead us to the fruit that we most desire.

While most of us are okay with a subtle shift of the trajectory of our words, what do we do when it seems like God has something entirely else in mind for us this year? What happens when our word begins to feel like a sweater that has shrunk in the wash. What do we do when our One Word no longer seems to fit? We may begin to doubt if it ever fit? We may begin to think we are doing this whole “My One Word thing” wrong?

Let it morph.

This is an important part of the process because this has to do with what you see. When we think our word hasn’t worked or stopped working, we need to reconsider what we are seeing through our One Word, rather than reconsidering our One Word. It probably isn’t the lens, but the view.

For something to morph means it changes. It has to do with form and shape–even essence. I don’t want to overthink this, but rather rethink this.

So I will say again: Let it morph.

You are probably familiar with the expression “let it be” and the Beatles song with the same title. Paul McCartney wrote it after he had a dream about his late mother. She died when he was fourteen and he dreamed of her saying this to him as a comfort during a period of stress and tension. The dream resonated with him and the song was the result.

Let it be…

There is a freedom that comes with the invitation to allow something to be, to see what it might become without interfering or trying to control or manipulate. To just let it be…

It’s a reassuring posture, isn’t it?

Let it morph …

In a similar way, you might find something refreshing if you consider allowing your One Word to frame something without being impeded by your own expectations.

My One Word is ANIMATE. I have used it to see places where God is breathing life into mine– allowing my own life to be animated, fueled, and empowered by His. It has proven refreshing and challenging. But there is more.

My word also invites action. An animator makes things move. This is a challenge to my tendency to be passive or hesitant, so I have to consider where God is calling me to act. I have to consider the areas that need movement and actually do something. This has proven far more challenging than I first thought. So, I am giving myself some space to prayerfully consider what God is doing. I do not want to rush ahead, but I also don’t want to remain passive in places or in the ways God is calling me to act.

So, let it morph…

We bring to God our words with open hands, and keep our hands open throughout the year, ready to hear and obey what God is saying as we follow Him.

To let our word morph means that we stay open to all the possibilities.
God may have different or additional plans than we could never have imagined or expected back in January. Proverbs 16:9 reminds us that while we make our plans, ultimately the Lord directs our steps.

To let our word morph means to consider this present moment.
We begin where we are and commit to join God in what He is doing now, not getting stuck in what we thought He would do or should do. That doesn’t mean we discard our hopes or mistakenly believe that God disregards our prayers, but we learn to live out the truth that formation best happens in the hard and in the not yet.

Are there other ways that your One Word can shape your view other than what you have already considered, than what you already see?

Ask God to help you see what He wants to show you.

So, let’s rest in this: God is faithful to finish what He started.

Seasons are a part of God’s created order, and seasons change. He allows the shifting seasons of our lives to draw us closer to Him and to trust Him. This means our faith will grow as we allow our One Word to morph to further frame and reveal what God wants to show us.

Let it morph.