Word of the Year 2026

Hey friends! As I began my thinking towards 2026 and all that it would hold, I, of course, thought of my word of the year. This is a tradition that started with Hey Y’all and has become a beautiful part of my spiritual life and my walk with God. 

I knew I would be leaving 2025 with much restoration BUT with many bits and bobs undone which actually plays into my new word, I think. Not because I demanded these “fixes” or because I was going to figure them out but rather because of my view of the holy orchestration of my life and all the Father still has left to teach me. 

It started as I was reading a book by a favorite author and I kept thinking, “This! This is what I want for my life. This is what I want for my story.” but I had a hard time making this “vibe”, as my kiddos say, a concrete word. Last year, I wasn’t sure what tense to use and now this year, I couldn’t even come up with a word. That’s going to make for a pretty disappointing bracelet, you know? However, since recognizing my word, the reason I couldn’t come up with it on my own is pretty clear… it’s a word I’ve tried to steer clear of for most of my life so wearing it on my wrist as a constant reminder wouldn’t have been my first idea. 

However, the more I read and the more the Lord worked on my heart the more I recognized the spiritual journey that would be necessary to have this “vibe” in my life, and, because the Lord is the greatest of authors, I could clearly see how the last five years had been woven together in lessons, heartaches, growth and desires to create the fertile ground needed for this new word to grow. I just wasn’t sure what it was yet,  and believe it or not, I was only slightly anxious that I wouldn’t find out in time to order my bracelet. Ha!

Actually, as I sat preparing to interview Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, I was flicking through one of her books to make sure I hadn’t missed any highlights I wanted to bring up, when I opened to a page that said, “THIS!!!” with an arrow pointing to an underlined sentence…

“That word is surrender.” 

And it clicked, yeah, that word I’d been searching for was surrender! So, I did a little happy dance until I realized that meant a year of focusing on surrendering which, if I’m honest, sounds a bit painful to this “Martha Heart”. I literally sat down and thought, “Lord, isn’t that what I’ve been learning this whole time? Learning how to intentionally obey and follow Your leadings. We walked through learning to wait expectantly for You to act even when the world feels like it’s falling apart. Then didn’t I have to surrender so much while learning to rest in You and Your plans? While even now, surrendering to the fact that not everything will be restored this side of Heaven and I’m leaving 2025 with disappointments? All of this kind of feels like surrender so why are we doubling down? What didn’t I get right?”

Yeah, it wasn’t great because I felt like I had missed something. I “got” my other words even if I was afraid of them but this one almost seemed redundant in the beginning. See, I really have learned so much about surrendering and letting go of control and even letting go of the need to control everything in my life. I rest so much easier in the path the Lord has for me. I have seen broken bits restored through these lessons so why another “tough” year? I had a word but not a vision. However, as the end of 2025 unfolded, I came to understand a side of surrender that I never took the time to consider before… The laying down NOT the giving up.

Have you ever seen a toddler fighting sleep? Their mom or dad is rocking them and trying to get them to let go and fall into rest but they are still just wanting to fight it. Their little heads bobble and their eyes are red and droopy yet something in that determined independence is afraid to let go. They’re afraid of missing something or just not getting their way. But then, when they finally surrender, they are lovingly laid down to take a nap while being watched over so carefully, often to wake up refreshed with a toy waiting or a snack prepared. Sounds pretty good to me.  It actually reminds me of Psalm 23 where the Lord makes us lie down in green pastures for our benefit and blessing. Have you ever noticed it says He makes you lie down in green pastures not He lets you lie down. Yeah, it’s one word that represents a host of problems in my soul.  

But the reality is, that the final outcome sounds pretty good if you ask me but as I was preparing to walk into 2026 I still wasn’t sure, and I’m still not sure, what it is that I need to surrender? Where is the Lord leading me in 2026? What specifically am I needing to learn? Where does He want me to grow? As I thought about verses to attach to such a unique view of surrender I kept going in circles, not sure how to pick something to encourage me in my journey when I didn’t know where I was headed. I always have a verse tied to my word study each year so I can memorize scripture but also have a clear anchor point in the Word. Remember, I’m not doing the whole #hustle #bossbabe junk as a word of the year concept. My word is very much tied to my spiritual growth and what the Lord is doing in my life and my verse helps keep me anchored in Him. Yet, I kept saying, “I don’t know what to do, Lord. Give me more direction. Give me something. How am I supposed to pick a verse or a devotional? You know me Lord, You know this is what I do.” 

Don’t miss understand me. I truly enjoy the process of picking a verse and devotional and digging in to learn all I can during this season. The problem was I was clueless. All I could think was, “I don’t know…” 

That’s when 2 Chronicles 20:12b started pop to mind over and over almost like not knowing was the point…

“We don’t know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” (NIV)

And you know what? That whole passage is kind of perfect for this year! In this passage, Jehoshaphat has been told that a great army is coming to destroy God’ people and he knows exactly what to do. He, and the people, cry out to God with the reality of their situation but not only that, they speak with great expectation towards the Lord’s faithfulness. Then, the Lord tells them not to worry because the battle isn’t theirs to fight so they can stand firm with confidence which is exactly what the people do while singing praises and celebrating as if the battle had already been won because it had been for them. Finally, it says the Lord gave them rest everywhere. Isn’t that awesome?

Now, God’s sense of humor is not lost on me with this passage. Every lesson and word of the last five years is laid out cleanly in 30 verses but what I love the most is the mention of a battle. Do you remember my verse for 2024? The one that went with rest? It was Exodus 14:14, “The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still” and while I’d like to say I gladly looked towards what being still before the Lord meant in that context, I was actually quite a bit of a baby about it because I didn’t want the Lord to fight for me because I didn’t want a battle. I was terrified of the outcome for months until I finally let the Lord fight on my behalf. 

So, as I settled into this passage about more battles I couldn’t help but laugh at my reaction this go-round. It went more like, “Yeah, that’s right! The Lord’s got this. Have you seen my God?” If 2024 Bailey could only see me now! So, do I think I will handle all the battles of my life with perfect grace and peace? Absolutely not, sometimes I can’t handle the grocery store with perfect grace and peace much less the actual battles of life BUT the change of heart and the lack of overwhelming anxiety filling my mind is a testimony in itself. And that 2024 battle I dreaded? Guess what? It’s still being fought, by God with very little input from me this time. I really did learn to rest in that which is pretty cool. 

Something else that kept creeping up as I settled into this word and prepared my heart at the end of last year was a phrase that kept coming up. A phrase that I think I’m going to learn a lot about in the next twelve months. It didn’t matter if I was reading books, listening to sermons, studying the Word or singing in the car, I would hear something and think, “That’s what I want God. That’s it. Help me with that.” And I swear every time, He’d gently say, “That sounds like surrender to me.” Yep, so much of what I want sounds like surrender. I don’t know how it’s going to happen, where I’m heading or why now of all times this is the focus. I don’t know a lot but my eyes are on Him. I pray this year is filled with God-sized dreams, lots of open hands, peace within the unknown while trusting His promises and I have to admit, that sounds like surrender to me.