• Home
  • About
    • What We’re About
    • LGBTQ+ Affirmation
    • Who's Who
    • Our Partners
  • Sundays
    • What to Expect
    • Kids, Youth, & Families
    • Listen to a Sermon
    • Sunday Service Music
  • Connect
    • Get Plugged In
    • Upcoming Events
    • Groups & Gatherings
    • Get In Touch With Us
    • Join a Sunday Team
  • Resources
    • Resource of the Week
    • Faith Topics & Questions
    • Advent & 40 Days of Faith
    • River Families
    • Kids/Youth: Stories & Plans
  • Give
  • River Census 2025

Resource of the Week

Choosing a word of the year

1/9/2026

0 Comments

 
This past Sunday at Conversation Church, we spent time looking ahead into the new year — not by making resolutions or setting rigid goals, but by noticing what we’re carrying with us, what we might be ready to release, and what we hope to make space for.

If you’d like a simple practice to continue that reflection, our Resource of the Week is the practice of choosing a Word for the Year.

Unlike New Year’s resolutions, choosing a word is not about self-improvement or achievement. It’s a gentle, prayerful way of naming a posture, quality, or orientation you want to return to again and again — especially when life gets busy, uncertain, or overwhelming.

Your word might be something like rest, courage, patience, trust, joy, grounded, or open. It could also be a phrase or image rather than a single word. There’s no “right” choice — and it’s okay if your word changes over time.

How to Try It

You might begin by asking yourself:
  • What do I notice myself longing for as I look ahead into this year?
  • What quality feels life-giving rather than demanding?
  • What do I want to be reminded of when things feel hard?

Some people like to sit quietly with these questions, journal about them, or pray with them. Others choose a word intuitively and see what unfolds. You might write your word somewhere visible, return to it during prayer, or simply hold it loosely as a reminder.

This practice isn’t about controlling the year ahead—it’s about staying open to how God might meet you in it.

An Additional Resource: A Scripture to Sit With

As you reflect on the year ahead, you might also find it meaningful to spend time with this passage from the Psalms:

“Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”

— Psalm 90:12

This verse doesn’t call us to optimize our time or predict the future. Instead, it invites humility, attentiveness, and wisdom — an awareness that our days are limited and therefore precious.

You might read this verse slowly a few times and ask:
  • What does a “heart of wisdom” feel like for me right now?
  • How does this verse invite me to live this year more attentively or gently?
  • What might God be teaching me as I step into this next season?
You don’t need to arrive at clear answers. Simply letting the question linger can be its own form of prayer.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    January 2026
    December 2025
    November 2025
    October 2025
    September 2025
    August 2025
    July 2025
    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025

River NYC
15 W. 39th Street
9th Floor
New York, NY 10018 ​|  Google Map
[email protected]
Social Media
River NYC App
​​iOS  |  Android
​
Learn more about what's happening at the River.
Join our weekly email list!
Subscribe

Copyright © 2025 River NYC. All rights reserved.  |  Site by SOUND 5
  • Home
  • About
    • What We’re About
    • LGBTQ+ Affirmation
    • Who's Who
    • Our Partners
  • Sundays
    • What to Expect
    • Kids, Youth, & Families
    • Listen to a Sermon
    • Sunday Service Music
  • Connect
    • Get Plugged In
    • Upcoming Events
    • Groups & Gatherings
    • Get In Touch With Us
    • Join a Sunday Team
  • Resources
    • Resource of the Week
    • Faith Topics & Questions
    • Advent & 40 Days of Faith
    • River Families
    • Kids/Youth: Stories & Plans
  • Give
  • River Census 2025