Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.
1 Corinthians 4:2 (NIV)

It means recognizing without hesitation or doubt that God has entrusted gifts to me that I’ve been called to steward faithfully. These gifts of grace—the words that He’s spoken to my heart on the mountain tops and in the valleys—are not for me alone. These streams of living water were never meant to remain stagnant. They were meant to flow in and through me to all those around me.

It means remembering that in every space He’s called me to, from school to work, He has equipped me for. I have the grace to do all that He’s called me to do and be all that He’s called me to be—His salt and light. I’m called to bring the Good News with me everywhere I go, through the words I speak, the posture I carry, and the fruit that blooms from my life.

It means knowing that all of this will be too much for me to handle alone, but God hasn’t asked me to use my own strength. He will empower me from His glorious and unlimited resources, but that also requires abiding in Him.¹ It means seeking Him first through time in His word, fellowship, prayer, and worship. It means walking alongside the community He’s brought into my life, the church I’ve been planted in, which forms the bride of Christ.

It means submitting and surrendering every blessing back to Him. Every relationship, resource, and all of my time and talents. It all belongs to Him anyways. I won’t know how the entire journey will unfold, but I don’t need to. I’m simply called to be obedient one step at a time.

It means understanding that ultimately this is all still for an audience of One: my God. When I fall short, and inevitably I will, I’m reminded that, as His child, there’s nothing that would make Him love me any less.

I love how new seasons give new meaning to familiar words. I’ve been listening to “Only Jesus” since it was released in 2023, but reciting its verses this year sparked something new for me. With all that God has done in my life thus far and all that I’ve learned about Him and myself in this past season of life, what “yes” do I have to offer Him? What has He asked of me, as both His daughter and His disciple?

This entry is my response.
Father, I pray for the grace to be faithful.

Your daughter,
Antoinette

Questions to ponder:
○ What does giving God your “yes” this year look this year?
○ How can you be faithful to the gifts God has entrusted to you?
○ Who could benefit from knowing what God has done in your life?

1. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. (Ephesians 3:16, NLT)
   
   “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5, NKJV)
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