Fresh Year, Fresh Starts

January 8th, 2015

Even in its bitter harshness (ummm -7 this morning was completely unacceptable, Indiana), there’s something I love about January.  I love fresh starts. I love the blankness of a clean slate.  Do-overs are embraced, and we all cheer on each other’s ambitious. There’s real beauty in that, Friends.

After if we all learned something in 2014 wasn’t it that “the past is in the past”? (Got it in your head for the rest of the day, Your Welcome.)

A new year and a new start remind me of God’s patience, forgiveness, grace, and mercy for a zillion and 3 restarts in 2015. Grace upon grace.

Perspective comes from both learning from the past and looking ahead, which helps me in making goals for 2015.  Resolutions will be broken, but goals can always be tweaked, restarted, and readjusted.

Writing down goals makes them more achievable.  Sharing them with you keeps me even more accountable.

43% of those who write down their goals, accomplish them
64% of those who write down their goals and commit to action, accomplish them.
76% of those who write down goals, commit to action, and have WEEKLY progress accomplish them.

~ Research by Psychology professor, Dr. Gail Matthews

Here’s some goals I have for this coming year:

Parenting~

• Listening. {Especially in times of conflict or when someone is in the wrong.}
• Teaching the boys to be diligent workers. {More on this in a later post.}
• Not taking life too seriously, and being able to laugh at myself more.
• Equipping them to be men.

Marriage~

• Scheduling date nights once a month. And hopefully a couple of nights away together this year.
• Being more intentional with the time we do get together.
• Less defensive, more teachable.

My Relationship with God~

• Spending consistent time in the Word daily.
• Journaling what He’s teaching me by writing out prayers, Scripture, and truths from the Word.
• Investing in the church through ministry, Bible study, small group, and pursuing relationships.

Myself~

• Less sugar. Less carbs. More real food.
• Working out consistently. {I’m currently trying out PiYo from my brother-in-law, Ryan, and really liking it.  It’s a good push, but not impossible. It’s only been a week and I can already tell a difference in my strength and flexibility.}
• A shot of Ningxia Red (superfood drink from Young Living) every morning {hello, sustained energy and better digestion than I’ve had in forever}
• Less work in the evenings. Unplugged is the new black.
• Blogging more consistently because it’s good for my soul, a keepsake, and because I love the community here.
• Reading. {This one affects my mood so much. I need to have my nose in a book or in my Kindle for some quiet time several times weekly.  I’m currently reading this and this and devouring them!}
• Scheduling self-care visits {dentist, eye doc, etc.}

—> How about YOU?  What are your goals?  What are you looking forward to in 2015?  Do you write down your goals? 

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