It's not too late to set your goals for 2023

month of the first quarter of: 2023

So don't beat yourself up or get too discouraged because there truly are great things that the Lord wants to do through us. Now, I'm not going to tell you anything that you probably haven't already heard. But there is something about hearing things more than once. A lot of times what we have previously heard, tends to land differently based on the spiritual life season that we're in. And let me just add this right here that we are approaching the spring in just a couple of weeks and we're coming out of the winter season.

Many times our spiritual life season of winter can represent a place of darkness, a place of pain and sometimes what even seems like some very long nights. But what I love about seasons, whether they are natural or spiritual, is that seasons change. Aint that awesome? Seasons change. Nothing ever stays the same and there is a time and a season for everything. And so as we are getting ready to exit the winter, we will be heading into the spring in just a few short weeks. Now, what I love about the spring, which is my favorite season, is that it represents a time of rebirthing, a time of newness and a time of blooming. I love to relax and meditate and simply spend alone time in my sunroom in our home. It's my personal she-shed that is when I can keep my husband out of it but that's a different story.

But anyway, the full glass windows face the wooded area behind our house. So oftentimes I have the opportunity to watch the deer that are prancing around just doing what deer do but I read that the fall months are usually the mating season for deer, then the pregnant female deer will go through a gestation period during the winter months and then usually, by mid spring, she will give birth to one or two offspring called fawns. And I've seen the baby fawn being tucked safely behind the trees after they were born until they were strong enough to make it out on their own. My point is that their birth represents the newness of life. And God is all about making things new. So what a wonderful time to prepare for this next season and the next quarter of the year. So how do we do that?

Well, it really requires looking at where you currently are and what it will take to launch you into where you want to go. So first, we need to determine what is it that you believe that the Lord wants you to do to accomplish or achieve. I love what Habakkuk 2:2 states. The Lord answered Habakkuk and said to write the vision and make it plain on tablets that he may run who reads it. Now I'm a person who still likes to put pen to paper. I learn better when I write things down and I certainly can remember things better when I write them down. So it's no surprise that the Lord would charge her Habakkuk to write the vision and to make it plain. So our first step is to determine the goal that you want to focus on for this next quarter or even the remainder of the year.

The writer and poet Bill Copeland wrote, "the trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score." Now, that is not a productive way to live. So the goal that we have needs to be specific. So you want to keep it simple. Keep it sensible and keep it significant. So for example, many of us, if not all of us can identify with a goal of losing weight, right? So whether it's five pounds, ten pounds, whatever, maybe the goal is to lose ten pounds? Well, this is very specific and it answers the what of your goal. My goal is to lose 10 pounds. Then you goal then, after being specific must also be measurable. In other words, how long will it take to accomplish this goal? How much will it cost? How will I know when it's accomplish? Make sense? Your goal also must be attainable. In other words, it needs to be realistic. Now losing ten pounds in six weeks is is very attainable but losing 50 pounds in six weeks, might not be as attainable. So it has to be within your capability of accomplishing. And this is very important, because sometimes we can be a little unrealistic in our expectations. And then it sets us up for discouragement.

Now just remember to always be strong and take heart because the Lord is always with us. So our goal, it must be specific, it must be measurable, it must be attainable and it also has to be relevant. Now, this step basically causes you to ask yourself, Is this goal, a priority? Does it matter to me and what am I willing to change or get rid of to see it through. So if we go back to our goal of losing weight, maybe we have some health concerns that can be improved by losing weight. Then I ask myself is improving my health a priority? Does it matter?

So then the last step is time. Answering the question of time is very important. When will I start? When will I reach this goal, that there needs to be a target date to begin and to end. So whether it's three months or six months or longer, there needs to be a deadline so that will help to keep you on task. For me, once I talk with others whom I trust about a goal that I have, it holds me accountable. I've written it, I've spoken it and now I must put it into action. So I say all of this, to hopefully encourage you and motivate you to achieve the things that the Lord is steering you to. It's possible. Dr. Delatorro McNeal in his book: Shift into a Higher Gear, writes that we should seek to get 1% better, every single day in one area of our lives. Isn't that good? 1% better every single day in one area of our lives. Boy, that sure does take a lot of pressure off and by seeking the Lord in prayer and acting on what he guides us to do, we are destined to make this next quarter and even the remainder of this year, the best that it can be. Let's pray. Father, thank you that you care so much for us, that you desire that our lives are focused and directed intentionally.

r word which says in Jeremiah: 29:11