Happy New Year & Our Family Tradition

by Cindy Bultema | Jan 1, 2010 | Uncategorized | 5 comments

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Happy New Year 2010 from our home to yours!!

We hosted a fun, family friendly New Years celebration last night. We had 19 people (kids and adults) enjoying a taco bar, sledding, games, an ice cream sundae bar, tattoo stand and so much more! 🙂 What fun!!

For today, we have a simple family New Years Day tradition. I’ll bring out markers and paper, and then each family member draws two pictures. The first picture is a note reflecting on things for which we want to say “Thank You” to God. For example, here is my picture from 2002…

That year, I was thankful for John, my two boys (the girls weren’t born yet), Harbor Clubs (a ministry at Church), the opportunity to serve in Africa, and growing as a disciple of Jesus.

Here’s a fun example from my son Jake (shared with his permission). Jake is now 15, but here’s his Thank You for 2002…. 🙂

Or here is Benj’s from last year…

For our New Years Day tradition, after we share our “Thank You” page, we take a new piece of paper. On this paper, we write out/draw specific prayer requests for the coming year. For example, this is Benj’s paper for 2009….

It is always so fun to see what the kids come up! It’s also a blessing for me and John to put our requests on paper, and then watch how God works over the year! When I pulled out John’s paper this year (I keep them all in a special New Years tub) ~ I gasped out loud. God answered every single item on his list (and they were big prayers!).

For my New Years Day prayers last year, I had written “opportunities to share Jesus with others”. (I just love Him so ~ and want to tell everyone I can!) I had no idea at that time that God would open a door for me to lead a Bible Study of 80 women on Monday nights (and less than a month later, no less)!

God is so faithful, isn’t He?! 🙂

I can’t wait for our special tradition to get started today !! I’ve pulled out the paper and markers, but John just said first I can sneak off to the bookstore for a bit with my Bible, while the kids are still waking up after their late night. Woo Hoo!!

What about for you?? Do you have a special New Years tradition?? Share with us please!! I’d love to hear from you! 🙂

Happy New Year! May 2010 be a year filled with much joy, peace, health, and God’s richest blessings!

5 Comments

jj on January 2, 2010 at 11:56 am

Hi Cinday, I did your Snow Day Shuffle two weeks ago when we got a foot of snow. Now I'm going to do this tradition of yours today. It's January 2, but I think we can still begin a New Year's tradition. Thanks for sharing.JJ
Reply
Michelle on January 2, 2010 at 2:55 pm

What a great tradition. My husband and I usually discuss our vacation plans and things we would like to do to the house within that year.
Reply
Wylie on January 3, 2010 at 1:15 am

Wow! Yes, He IS FAITHFUL!!! PTL!!!Wylie
Reply
Midday Escapades on January 4, 2010 at 3:18 am

Happy New Year to you and your family! What a wonderful new year's tradition, too. Sounds like a fun party!
Reply
Jessie on January 5, 2010 at 5:34 pm

What a fun tradition! During the holiday's I often cover the whole table in parchment paper (the big roll) and let everyone go to town. If something brillian develops I cut it out and glue it in a journal belonging to each of my kids.I love the specific nature of yours though. I can incoporate that too!Love it!
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I’m Cindy—wife, mom, ministry leader, speaker, author & overcomer.

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"Cindy Bultema is a breath of fresh air! With vulnerable openness, gut-level honesty, down-home humor, and timeless biblical truth, her spoken and written words will inspire you to take an action step toward fresh faith and renewed hope. Cindy ministers on and off the platform with personal warmth and genuine compassion. As a speaker, author, and mentor to many, Cindy has my highest recommendation!"

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Shari Hulcy, Women's Ministries Director
Woodside Bible Church, White Lake, MI

"As women's ministry leaders know, finding a speaker who is Right AND Relevant is quite a task. God led us to Cindy last spring as a speaker for our fall retreat at Mackinac Island. Even then, I did not realize what a gifted messenger she would be. With almost 70 women present, Cindy mentioned each woman at least once by name throughout her sessions. She did not shrink back from telling her testimony, as difficult as it must have been. And she opened the book of Revelation to our ladies with insight and application like few women I have ever heard. Thank you, Cindy for marking this retreat as a milestone in women's ministries at Woodside Bible Church. Praying we will never be the same."

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Happy New Year & Our Family Tradition

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