Three days have passed since this new year and my heart has stopped to meditate on the thoughts and projects that God has for me in this new year that has just begun. Surely friend reader, you also wonder what God has devised for you this year. The word of God says that they are "thoughts of good and not of evil." We need to work together with the Lord to enable him to carry out his purpose with us.

In Ephesians 2:10 the Lord reminds us:

Because we are his work, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand for us to walk in them.

God has a good plan for each of us, but not everyone experiences it. Many times we live well below the level that God wanted us to enjoy.
For many years I did not use my rights and privileges as a daughter of God. This happened for two reasons: first, I didn't even know I had rights and privileges. Although I was a Christian and believed that I would go to heaven when I died, I did not know that anything could be done about my past, present or future; secondly, I lived well below the standard of living that God wanted for me and that was due to the wrong way I perceived and felt about myself. I had a very poor self-image, and that affected my daily life and, of course, my expectations about the future.

In Jeremiah 29:11, the Lord says:

Because I know the thoughts I have about you, says Jehovah, thoughts of peace, not evil, to give you the end you expect.

If you have a bad image of yourself, as you had, I recommend you read the story of Mefi-boset, found in chapter nine of Samuel's second book. This story had a big impact on my life, and I think it will have it on his as well. It will help you see that you are not only living below the level of well-being that God wants for you now, but you are also in danger of omitting what God has in mind for you in the future.