Joy Farrington on making a fresh start

Joy Attmore

The other day I was struck by this question:

'What are you looking for? What is it that you want?'

Have you ever had one of those 'genie-in-a-bottle' moments where someone has the power to grant you your wishes if you just ask them or answer their questions correctly? They don't come by very often and are perceived by us as magical moments that require a pinch in the arm to check that we're not dreaming. One of those moments for me was when my husband knelt down on one knee and asked me to marry him, and although I knew one of my dreams was coming true, I have since been discovering just how much ever since. I was surprised in that moment by a question that would change the course of my life from then onwards.

Over the past few days of welcoming this new year in, I heard this question asked about what I wanted and, rather than brush over it, it made me stop and I mulled it over. The beginning of a new year can be a great opportunity to ask this question but so, I think, is the rest of the year that follows. What are we looking for? What do we spend our days wanting?

I sat out on the porch, soaking in the Californian sun, and made myself think about what I really wanted before writing it down as a marker of that moment. Here is what I wrote:

'I want to live an audacious life, boldly taking risks for the Kingdom and for love. I want to see people living in whole families that have been restored and now make decisions in purity and unity. I want the courage to do all that I was created to do and the wisdom to know how to do it. I don't want to miss a beat!'

The year of 2014 left definite imprints upon me, non-negotiable standards that I want to live the rest of my life by: family and unconditional love. It can be messy and painful but when we choose the standard of healthy family, we choose a standard of heaven. It provides the safety we need to be vulnerable and a strong foundation to be released from.

The word 'family' for a lot of people may conjure up an image of brokenness, hurt or disappointment but it doesn't have to remain that way. The beauty of restoration is something that we are all encountering as we journey through life and allow love to heal us. The same can be said for our family units and the family that we are creating. We weren't created to do life alone but rather to do it in family and this has been burnt upon my heart more than ever before.

I also feel the importance of not shrinking back from the enormity of our dreams but gaining the courage to embrace them. Our deepest desires or dreams will excite and inspire us but they can also be the biggest place of vulnerability as we step out to see them fulfilled. For a lot of people that fear can completely prevent them from seeing the fullness of what they were created for as they are never able to move past it. It's my desire to see that fear demolished.

Maybe this is a simple train of thought triggered by the beginning of a new year and the traditional idea of making a fresh start or re-evaluating our lives. But maybe it's also a holy moment that we are invited to participate in and capture.

Imagine being stood in front of the Maker of the Universe and asked the question, 'What are you looking for? What do you want?'

Allow the 'right answers' to fade away, ignore the voice of fear and listen to the dreams that are held deeper still. They are the ones to write down. They are the ones to pursue. They are the invitations to our destiny.