Goals for 2015

When I was in my 30's, I made New Year's Eve a very special evening between God and I.  Around 10:00 p.m. when the television was showing different parts of the world celebrating New Year's, I would feel a sense of newness - fresh beginnings - begin to well up inside of me.  It was exciting to know I was being given a new slate with which to start over and refocus areas of my life.

As a Christian, Jesus gave me a new life the moment I asked Him to forgive all my sins and be my Savior.  He gave me that clean slate.  No matter how many times I've dirtied it up He still wipes it clean and I'm very grateful.

So on these nights, New Year's Eve, I've taken it upon myself to refocus my lens so that I can stay on track for where I believe the Lord is directing my footsteps.  Sometimes I've recapped the previous year and written down all I could remember.  Other times I made a list of goals for the spiritual, emotional, financial, physical and mental areas.  Then there were times I felt as if I'd written a book.

But this year?  This year I kept it simple.

This year I wrote it just a few minutes ago.  This year it only took about twenty minutes.  This year I already knew what I wanted to work on for 2015.

I kept it very simple.  Something I've had to learn how to do this past year.  Nothing complicated and yet some of them will still stretch me.  I feel I am in sync with what God feels is reasonable.  I'm not trying to reach lofty goals nor am I setting goals so low they do not offer a challenge.

I've chosen to share them with you so that you can see how simple they can be and still serve a purpose.  Perhaps you'll be encouraged to write a few goals for yourself.  If so, feel free to borrow some of mine:

Goals for 2015

1. To lead a life that is pleasing to God.  To work on my issues with the help of the professionals He has brought to help me.  To stay in contact with my family, to talk to my friends as I am able and to practice solid self-care in all the above. 
2.  To attend church either in person or via willowcreek.tv.
3.  To complete the Today in the Word by Moody Bible Institute.
4.   To let go of doing everything perfectly so that I can reduce frustration and lead a life that is less stressful.  Only Jesus lead a perfect life.  He never asked us to do so.  He taught us to lean on the Father for everything so that we would learn how to have a healthy dependence on Him.
5.  Learn from reading, video or other resources the trappings of obesity and how to eradicate it in my life.  This education will confront the childhood beliefs that are no longer true and change them into the adult life I now live.  My inner child must not be in control any longer.  She needs to take her queues from me – not I from her.  Slow and steady wins the race.
6.  To disciple Ryan, Hope, Samantha and Alicia.
7. To follow my budget and stay on track especially since it’s so tight until April. Join the Fitness Center when my budget allows if that's the right thing to do.
8. To continue writing my blog even when I feel distracted and out of sorts.  Writing is a good source of being able to sort out my thoughts and feelings.  Even when it’s hard it always benefits me in some way.
9. Be a source of encouragement to those I love.
10.  Be available for unexpected “God callings.”
11.  Pray for those I Iove and especially for those whose tragedy is brought to my attention.
12.  Be in step with who God wants me to be, what God wants me to do, why God wants me to go, where God wants me to be, when God wants me to arrive or leave and how God wants me to serve Him.  After all, I am His servant – He is not mine.