One Word will change your life. This annual practice broadens and deepens the spiritual lives of those who dive in.
Begin by asking Whomever, or whatever, you perceive to be the Higher Power for One Word you will embrace for the space of a year. Ask for the One Word, a wisely-designed assignment that uniquely applies to what is ahead for you.
Sometime One Word is like a pebble in your shoe, sometimes an ethereal comfort, sometimes a guiding light. The same word may end up being each of these during the evolving year. The only catch, you don’t get a word unless you request it. You must ask for it and welcome it when it arrives.
Some people shortchange this aspect of the One Word practice by turning it into a logical or emotional hunt for what you perceive to be an aspect of your life that needs bolstering. There is nothing wrong with this self-awareness, but it does not substitute for being given a word. By all means, assess your areas that need more development, and pursue them vigorously as a parallel goal. But don’t let what your ego designs supplant what can come more divinely.
Although One Word was first popularized by the administration of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, which began practicing this as an organization in 1999, it is applicable for people of any faith, and for those who do not identify a personified deity. Whatever you see as the organizing intelligence of this existence, there are simple steps for getting your One Word:
- Ask for your One Word, humbly trusting you will be answered.
- This asking activates your relationship with the powers that be.
- Then you tune-in, which is synonymous with listening, attending, noticing coincidences and repetitions, taking note of synchronicities, receiving signs.
- God/Universe/Higher Power/Collective Unconscious, whatever you know it as, will talk to you the way you hear/see/feel- and don’t be surprised by His/Her/Its sense of humor.
- The most important thing: Make a pact with yourself that you’ll go without a word rather than choosing one for yourself. Don’t short-change yourself on what this can be.
- Have faith that there is a word reserved for you! And that One Word wants to dance with you!
What you do with your One Word once you get it
- Hold the word loosely, let it do what it wants with you.
One year I received the word “Trust”, which made me giggle because I’d become quite good at relying on God to provide for me and to guide me. I thought the year ahead was going to be a cake walk based on the word I was given. Six weeks later a crisis arose at work regarding an accounting error I had made. Solving it would be herculean. I felt overwhelmed and far too small for what was ahead. Then inside me I “heard” the still, small voice say, “Trust yourself”.
In an instant I realized what my One Word was really about and how much it would require of me. It was on a scale that initially sickened me, but I had been doing the One Word for several years at this point, so I leaned into the specific challenge given to me and let myself grow into someone who now knows how to trust herself. - Change your word if necessary. After you get your One Word you may have second thoughts. If you feel another One Word comes along that is really your word, trade in the first one for the second one. Part of the beauty of this experience is asking and tuning-in. Communing with that which is greater than myself is the big take away. If you realize it was your own head talking to you the first time and now the real One Word has arrived, simply adjust, modify, or change to the new word. No one is coming around later with a red pen to grade you. Give yourself the luxury of being able to attempt this without needing perfection. If sloppily is the only way you can do this, be sloppy. The important thing is finding the courage and humility to ask and then accessing the courage and patience to receive.
- Cooperate with the word you receive. Let this One Word lead you in the year-long dance, whether it is a Waltz, Rumba, or a Reel.
- Stay mindful of your One Word by writing it down so you will see it at least once a day… in such a way that you are willing to view it all year. Be as simple or as decorative as you think is best. You want it to be as engaging in August as it is in January. Also, be wise about the placement. If you are only going to see it when you are on the phone with clients, you may start relating it to stress. Try to put it in a spot where you will have a calm moment to reaffirm your commitment to letting this One Word have its way with you.
- Announce your word. If you journal, make an entry that you can reread in the future. Commit to telling at least one person about this. Maybe you’ll introduce this practice to others in your circle of friends and family. I’d love to hear about your word. You can send me a message through the Meetup.com message system, which forwards your message to my personal email. You’ll see my photo under organizer and beneath that a link to send a message. Put “One Word” in your subject line so I won’t miss it!
As we closed out our workshop on this topic yesterday, a few attendees stayed on the zoom chat to address a few concerns. These may also be yours.
What if I ask and hear nothing? Be sincere and patiently wait. Maybe you are not confident in your ability to get the message and so you dismiss it as too small or simple when it arrives. (Hint: Most likely your word is NOT going to shoot over your head spelled out in the tail of a flaming comet.) Also, your ability to hear/notice/see/apprehend the message may be brand new, fresh out of the package. If so, it will be like a well with a hand pump that hasn’t been used for a while. You sometimes have to move that handle up and down for a ridiculously long time before the pump is “primed” and can begin to let the water flow. But no part of the pumping was wasted or done in vain. All of it was summoning up the water.
What if I get it wrong? If the worse thing that happens to you this year is that you attend to One Word that you concocted for yourself, we’re going to call that a good year. Don’t sweat it. Maybe in June you realize you made up your word and now you think your real One Word has become apparent- just shift to your new understanding and do the new word.
There is a benefit that is even more important than having One Word work on you, for you, and through you this year– this practice opens us up spiritually:
- We humbly ask.
- We show up and tune-in, acknowledging a higher power than ourselves.
- We allow ourselves to receive the gift of an assignment that we attend to for a year.
May your new year be enriched by this practice and
may you receive the diverse blessings that flow from this endeavor.
Resources
- The Book that introduced me to this work.
- A chance to make a Poster of your word to display.
- Find your “Tribe”. This site approaches One Word a bit less spiritually, in that it encourages you to choose a word, but its design allows you to “see” other participants who have embraced your same word. This can be ideal for people who like a team approach.
- Since this blog was first published, I have written a book about finding new approaches to celebrating holidays… and life, which includes a chapter about this One Word practice. What the Soul Wants for Christmas is available through Amazon.
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This material was offered via Zoom in a Free monthly Well Being 101 class.
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