My word of the year
For many years now, I’ve asked God to give me a word for the new year. Without fail, God has come through every time. This year is no exception. However, before I tell you about my word for the year, I want to encourage you to seek God for your own word of the year.
Just so you know, seeking God about His word for me is something I take very seriously. Sometimes the word comes right away, but most of the time it takes a while. And when I say a while, I mean weeks of praying and seeking God. Usually, my word is related to something I’m struggling with or something I need to focus on for personal growth. Oftentimes, it’s connected to our church.
In 2020, my word of the year was BELIEVE. Of course, the COVID pandemic hit that year, and I was struggling with what was happening in the world—especially in the church. I was praying about my word and getting a little frustrated that nothing was coming to me.
In week three or four of waiting, my wife Karen and I were driving home from seeing our family in New Mexico. As we were descending down the mountain through a beautiful national forest, a sign stood high in an open space with one word on it. The word was Believe. I knew immediately that was my word. That word was incredibly helpful as I faced the daily challenges of the COVID season.
In 2021, God gave me two words: WAIT and COURAGE. I’m not a patient person—although I am growing in that area. When I got anxious, which was often, I remembered the word wait, and it calmed me down. Courage was something I especially needed that year. I had to say some hard things to the church about the division that was taking place. Whenever I was afraid or tempted to just go with the flow, the word courage would come to mind, and I knew what I had to do.
Last year, my word was GO. This was God’s word to me concerning our church. It was time to get things moving again after a couple of hard years. We did a lot to move our church forward in 2025, which I’ll be sharing with our congregation at our State of the Church address on Sunday, February 1.
Before I roll out the word the Lord gave me this year, I think it’s important to understand an important principle about seeking God for a personal word. You need to lean in and listen until you get your word. My physical hearing isn’t what it used to be because of surfer’s ear and age. I have a hard time hearing certain tones and voices. If you see me leaning in when I’m talking to someone, it’s probably because I don’t want to miss what they’re saying.
Most of us don’t have a problem talking to God. Hearing God, however, requires that we lean in until we hear Him speak. It might happen on a prayer walk, while reading Scripture, during fasting, or while listening to worship music on your way to work. You never know when God is going to speak—but when He does, you don’t want to miss it.
Okay, now for my word of the year. Drum roll, please. The word is GROW. I was taking a prayer walk when God gave me this word. It came so fast it almost shocked me. In retrospect, it makes total sense.
We’re taking steps this year to fortify the foundation of our church so that we can grow and have a greater impact on our community. Stay tuned for next week’s blog, where I’ll talk about our relaunch on Easter Sunday. It’s part of our plan for growth in 2026.
If God gives you a word for the year, I’d love to hear about it. You can reach me at steve@pacificlifechurch.org.
Stay close to Jesus in 2026,
Steve