It’s New Year’s Day and like many others I’m looking back at last year as I look forward to the new one. I had a great time this week reading through some of my blog archives. It is so enjoyable to look back on God’s goodness in our lives this year. I think the theme that stood out most was His provision. God has truly blessed us with many gifts of His grace.

[1] -[2] February 20th–In this entry I announced that we had welcomed little Tyler into our family. Up till then, my blog was called “A Tale of Two Blakey’s” that was when it was changed to “Blakeyblog.” We were so excited about Tyler! In one entry when Tyler was just a week old I wrote something so hilarious–”His sleeping is on and off during the day–I’ve been taking the advice of many moms to nap when he naps. Bobby or I are only up with him about three to four times a night so sleep has not been a problem for us, in fact it seems that’s all we are doing these days!”

-[3] April 14th–This was a review of the book Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge. This is the most frequently visited archive because each week new visitors come as a result of searching for a Christian review of this book at Google.

-[4] May 1st–“Orange County Bound…“–This post was written three weeks before our move from Sunnyvale to Aliso Viejo. Bobby and I were sad to leave our youth group there, but excited about what the Lord had in mind for us here. I learned a big lesson in being submissive to the Lord in all circumstances. When we had interviewed at Compass Bible Church our pastor’s wife told us they had always prayed to God “Anything, anytime, anywhere.” I wanted this to be true of me too.

[5] -[6] June 21st–By this post we had moved into our new condo and Bobby celebrated his first Father’s Day. I like this entry because I write about reading the Bible every day. After moving here to Compass Bible Church I started reading through the Bible with the [7] church’s daily reading plan. I haven’t read every day’s passages, but after seven months that is more than I have usually read! So I am excited about starting at the beginning this year and, Lord willing, reading all the way to the end!

[8] -July 19th–This is one of my favorite entries from 2006. Bobby, Ty and Brad are such an inspiration and encouragement to me and this entry was about their friendship and ministry together.

-[9] “What Do Girls Need?” and [10] “…A Transformed Heart” After reading several books for young girls I was sad to find that most lacked any spiritual value. Today’s young Christian girl doesn’t need to esteem herself more, be convinced of her inner mystery, claim her beauty or demand respect. What do Christian girls need? Christian girls need to be transformed into the likeness of their Savior.

-[11] “Christian Psychology?” and [12] “The Call to Counsel” I had the opportunity to go to a counseling conference which had me considering different dangers of psychology and how it has infiltrated the church. Many Christians don’t have confidence that God’s Word can speak directly to their family[13] troubles, emotional pain or tough questions. But God is clear that He gives us everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). In the end I decided to skip the conference and instead to do a better job [14] “Considering Tyler.”

-[15] October 30th–In this entry I wrote about disciplining babies…a topic still much on my mind! The “experts” seemed to think that we should wait till Tyler is old enough to talk with us before we started any real discipline. Since writing that entry I’ve learned some good things about disciplining Tyler. Punishment is only a small part of discipline but some people mistake punishment for discipline. Discipline is so much more than a spanking or time-out. It is training, nurturing, guiding, encouraging, warning and instituting consequences for disobedience. Understanding this point has been a huge help as Bobby and I discipline Tyler.

-November 13th– [16] Are we too busy?

Another thing I really liked about reading my blogs from last year was getting to look through some of the books I had read–

[17] Twelve Extraordinary Women by John MacArthur

[18] Feminine Appeal by Carolyn Mahaney

[19] The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence

[20] Helper By Design by Elyse Fitzpatrick

[21] Christian Living Beyond Belief by Cliff McManis

[22] Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge

[23] The Quest for Character by John MacArthur

[24] Anxious for Nothing by John MacArthur

[25] Humility True Greatness by C.J. Mahaney

[26] Damsels in Distress by Martha Peace

Reflecting on 2006 on my blog has really helped renew my confidence and hope in the Lord. He has provided for me and guided me last year and I know that He does not change, but will continue to be good in 2007. Bobby taught from Psalm 27 yesterday and I liked how he said, “For every New Year’s wish or resolution we could probably list a fear we have in the coming year…” Tomorrow is full of unknowns but that isn’t for me to worry about or fear. We can’t see or determine the future, but we can know God who holds it in His hands…Happy New Year!