Happy New Year! Resolutions or goals?

NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS…

  Do you make them? Did you make any for 2013? If you did, how did you do? Did you manage to keep them? Have you ever made resolutions and managed to finish the year with the resolutions still intact? What about resolutions for 2014? Do you plan to make any?

Perhaps you are one of many who prefer to set goals rather than resolutions. What are your goals for 2014? Setting goals is the avenue I have decided to travel through 2014. I just feel that setting goals is so much better than resolutions because with goals, you significantly decrease your failure rate!  

Some of the most common New Year’s resolutions are as follows:

·        Lose Weight

·        Volunteer to Help Others

·        Quit Smoking

·        Get a Better Education

·        Get a Better Job

·        Save Money

·        Get Fit

·        Eat Healthy Food

·        Manage Stress

·        Manage Debt

·        Take a Trip

·        Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

·        Drink Less Alcohol

Here goes my list.....
I think just about everyone I ask is resolving to lose that weight this year! I know that is one of my goals. Notice I said ‘goals’.

I’m not setting a goal to volunteer to help someone. I’m making that a habit! Over the past couple of years I have volunteered in several different capacities and I have found that I receive a tremendous blessing when I volunteer somewhere. Why would I want to give up receiving a blessing?

Next on the list is to quit smoking. I accomplished that one 6 years ago! Praise the Lord!!

Others on this list that I am applying to my life in some way include education, health, saving money, manage stress, and taking a trip.  

The only way I’ll drink less alcohol is if I drink absolutely none at all, and that’s no big deal to me! I have an occasional glass of wine and I really don’t care to stop that totally.

Also on my list of goals, or bucket list for 2014, is to write more. I love to write and I haven’t done much over the past few years so I am going to change that. Who knows? Maybe if I am consistent with writing posts for my blog, maybe I will get more followers! I believe that the majority of people who write because they enjoy it also like to have readers for what they have written. I know I do. I like to know that something I have written has touched someone other than myself and caused them to think about the subject that particular post is about. Also, there is no denying that positive feedback is a pretty good ego booster!

Moving on down my list for 2014... I plan to de-clutter, reorganize, and finish cosmetic projects throughout my house. I have plans for painting, finishing our guest bathroom remodel, throwing out possibly a garbage truck full of old papers and various items that I no longer use, and would not be of any use to anyone else either! I have goals for my scrapbooking and other crafts; for improving my personal Bible study and reading; and to fill shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child throughout the year.

I will begin my painting projects with the front door, travel through the kitchen and stop long enough to paint the cabinets, and conclude with having my sons paint the outside of my house. (They don’t know that yet so don’t spoil the surprise please!) Finishing the guest bathroom that we started remodeling about 5 years ago will be such a blessing! We don’t have much left to do to it, and if we are finishing it then I can no longer use that room for storage! Therefore, I have to de-clutter and reorganize the stuff (go ahead and input your word of choice here…junk, crap, etc.) that is presently stored in there! I will post before and after pics of some of these projects so that someone reading this can help to hold me accountable for actually following through with these goals!  

My scrapbooking has pretty much been pushed aside for the past few years because of health and other issues, so I have a lot of catching up to do with my grandchildren’s albums! My goal for this is to complete 1-2 pages per grandchild, per month. With six grandchildren, that means I have to do 12 pages per month, not including any extras for a special events. I’m also going to be helping a friend develop a ministry which involves creating scrapbooks for foster children! (Another blessing!!)

Operation Christmas Child is a world-wide ministry led by Samaritan’s Purse that was created by Franklin Graham, you know, Billy's boy. This ministry involves filling a shoe box, or similarly sized container, with small Christmas gifts and hygiene items, for children all over the world that otherwise probably would not receive anything. The majority of these gifts are distributed to children in countries that have been devastated by war, natural disasters, and poverty. The shoe boxes are often given to children in orphanages. 2013 was the second year for my husband and I to fill shoe boxes for OCC, and the first year for our church to serve as a Relay Center for the ministry. This meant we would be collecting shoe boxes from our area churches and then relaying them to a larger Collection Center. Our church, with an average worship service attendance between 75-100, collected 150 shoe boxes this year! In 2012 we collected less than 100. My goal, or challenge, for my fellow church members is for us to collect at least 250 shoe boxes for 2014! I also have an ultimate goal with OCC to make a trip with a distribution team and have the privilege of placing the shoe boxes directly in the children’s hands! I get so excited just thinking about that! 
This year we were able to set our donated shoe boxes up to be tracked so we could follow where they went. When I received the email telling me that my shoe boxes had been shipped to Colombia, I felt like I was receiving the greatest Christmas gift ever! I was, and still am, very excited!! This is a ministry that I know God is in full control of, and that He has called me to be a part of! How do I know that? Well, quite simply, it just feels right! I know I won't be able to be on one of the planes delivering the boxes in 2014, but I can be preparing for the time that God opens that door! So, my next step is to go to the processing center in Dallas to assist with processing the boxes this next year, and maybe make some connections to find out what steps I need to take to be one that is chosen to be a part of one of the distribution teams. It may seem like a long shot, but I know that nothing is impossible for my God to do! If He has plans for me to do this, He will open the right doors for me. Now, back to my goals for 2014! 

My Bible study and reading time is an area that I have been very lazy about in the past. I don’t like admitting that, but I have to. I have finally realized that it is absolutely crucial to my spiritual growth, and I want that spiritual growth more than I ever have in my life! So, if I have to get up earlier each day to spend 30 minutes to an hour reading and studying my Bible, then I will be doing just that! I know the benefits that I will reap from this one goal will be so incredible! Today I will decide on a definite reading plan to read through my Bible in one year. I have also already made plans to facilitate a ladies Bible study group at my church! I know the ladies will keep me accountable for my Bible study, which I can't do without reading my Bible, so! Two birds, one stone!! HA!!

Another really big goal for me is to stay off of facebook on Sundays. Now, anyone who knows me, knows what a big deal that is for me! There for a while I believe I was addicted to facebook! I was on that site almost constantly! I have significantly decreased my time on facebook over the past few months, but I want to make the commitment to dedicate every Sunday to only doing things that will strengthen my faith and improve my spiritual life. Believe me, facebook does NOT do that!

So, now it’s your turn. Are you setting some goals for yourself for the upcoming year? Please share some of your goals and let’s help each other to keep these goals. Let’s partner up to encourage one another and hold one another accountable!

See you next year!

If you are interested in finding out more about the Operation Christmas Child ministry or Samaritan's Purse, here is a link!  http://www.samaritanspurse.org/what-we-do/operation-christmas-child/