2023-2024 MOPS THEME
THIS YEAR IS THE YEAR TO SAY YES
Have you ever gotten to the end of a week, month or year and thought, “How did I get here? Where has the time gone?” It happens in our parenting, friendships, marriage and work- we get caught up in the urgent demands of the day-to-day, and then years go by, and we realize we haven’t been making the small choices that will get us where we actually wanted to be. So this is the year to make some moves.
SAY “YES.”
It’s amazing how one little word can change your life. But too often, our ‘yeses’ are reserved for default decisions we aren’t even intentionally making or the stuff we feel obligated to do. What if we started saying ‘yes’ to the important things? Yes, to parenting on purpose. Yes, to significant challenges and out-of-your-comfort-zone opportunities. Yes, to your marriage. Invitations to connect with others? Yes, please. Saying yes opens us up to new ways of thinking and helps cultivate a growth mindset. To clarify, we’re not talking about people-pleasing or over-extending yourself. In fact, it’s the opposite. Developing a ‘yes’ mindset is living intentionally, focused on your goals for yourself and your family. It’s about listening to God’s still, small voice and doing the brave things rather than the easy things.
Now is your opportunity to develop a spirit of adventure and make new memories. Now is your chance to invite your kids along for the thrill that comes with doing hard things. You are wildly capable. Get uncomfortable. Persevere and say yes to the next small brave step God asks you to take.
There's nothing comfortable about a cactus, right? But it’s long suffering, resilient, and endures. Sound familiar? You might call it the “mother” of all plants. In fact, cactus are a symbol of protection, warmth and motherly love in the Native American culture. When life feels hard to hold this year, we’ll look to the cacti for inspiration. They thrive in desolate surroundings and produce blossoms in the midst of their prickly hardships.
Think of your child’s face when you hand them a double scoop in a waffle cone on a warm, summer day. That’s the kind of delight we want to feel in life this year. Sure, there’s a lot of laundry, trips to the grocery store and tedious parenting, but if we can find little ways to summon that kind of joy in regular life, we can make every day an ice cream day.
Remember when you could hold photographs in your hands, moments after you took them? Polaroid pictures at birthday parties, sticker collections at recess, and scrapbooks bursting with scalloped edged memories – those were the days, and we’re going to get back to the simple pleasure of watching moments develop in our hands, and staying present in each day.