Looking Back, Looking to the Future

Did I go to sleep and wake up with another year gone? It sure seems like it. The older I get, the faster each year seems to pass. Not sure if it's because I have four small kids or another reason. I've been thinking about 2012 and wondering if time passes faster for those of us who don't stop to smell the roses from time to time. You know the person: they are so busy or have the facade of busyness that they never bother to stop and look at life passing by them. 

I think this could be my problem. It's not that I have a packed schedule 365 days-a-year. But I don find myself failing to stop and enjoy life. It's more than reading a book to relax, or watching a movie with my kids. I just don't enjoy each and every day as I should, especially not as a follower of Christ should. And definitely not as someone whose experienced the frightening reality of pediatric liver disease firsthand.

I'm not one to make resolutions. I choose to list goals; things I'd like to improve on personally or professionally. I like to make them measurable and actually attainable. To me, setting a goal of losing 30 pounds means nothing without a set plan I KNOW I will work through. But saying I will strive to become a better friend by deliberately pursuing relationships I want to nurture - now that is something concrete.

2012 was not a terrible year by any means and I'm an extremely blessed man and fully know it.  But I look forward to 2013 with anticipation and joy, awaiting all the possibilities before me and reveling in God's grace and vision for my life.

What is your best memory of 2012? What are you looking for most in 2013?