Welcome to our study, Grace & Goals. This month we will explore our pursuit for positive change and how it is directly impacted by our relationship with Jesus, our beliefs around trust and faith, and our choice to ask for and accept grace and allow it to make us over from the inside out. Today's verse: "Abraham entered into what God was doing for him, and that was the turning point. He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own." Romans 4:3 The Message You're here because you know that something needs to change. You may not be sure how to make it happen. Hopefully you read the practical Getting Started post prior to this - it will provide you with the how-to and process of goal setting. I want to encourage you today, on day one of our goal-setting challenge, that you are not in this alone. In addition to our support group, as a child of God, you have access to grace that can fuel whatever changes you are called to make. Grace is the difference between 'will power' and God-power. Grace is defined as: ...the merciful kindness by which God, exerting His holy influence upon souls, turns them to Christ, keeps, strengthens, increases them in Christian faith, knowledge, affection, and kindles them to the exercise of the Christian virtues[1] Grace provides us with the strength and power to 'enter into what God is doing in us' - the complete opposite of will-power and self-improvement. Grace is a 'holy influence' that directs our choices, defines our goals, and builds the muscle of discipline. I have heard beautiful stories from folks who experienced miraculous healing from addiction and unhealthy living. I've also heard raw and real stories from folks who are still working towards their freedom. We don't know the route on which God will take us. It's important to know that quitting bad habits (especially addictive ones like sugar or smoking or alcohol or drugs) can be a process. One study suggests that smokers, for example, can expect to 'quit' 30 times before it finally takes![2] I don't share that to discourage you, but to remind you that if you struggle these first weeks, and can't seem to make your goals, DON'T GIVE UP! Our 3 for 30 group is designed not only to celebrate success, but most importantly to encourage each other when we struggle. Below a prayer card for you. Print it out (download below) and pray this over yourself throughout your days. [1]https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/nas/charis.html [2]https://www.healthline.com/health-news/quitting-smoking-expect-failure-before-you-succeed#Somewhere-in-the-middle Download & Print the prayer card here
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PREFACE Discipline has been my nemesis. My brain lives in overdrive. (They have a 'name' for it now - attention deficit disorder - which, I think is completely wrong. ADD is not the deficit of focus, it's hyper-focus on a million things at once!) Which means that discipline, especially repeating tasks, is a struggle for my zippy brain. Recently, I started learning to give myself goals and build that discipline and repetition muscle. I began to use a habit tracker (I love this one) as a visual aid, and I started forming accountability groups to keep me honest and motivated. I also learned to invest in my goals: in the accountability groups I offer up a chance at a $25 gift card if you complete the challenge, but for myself personally, I have a $25 gift waiting at the end of each challenge just for me! (I'll show you my pretty red leather gloves when they get here.) The Grace & Goals serial devotional is about bringing the 30-day challenges back around to the source of our strength and motivation, our relationship with Jesus. If you choose to follow along, you'll need a few things:
Between now and Sunday, be thinking about goals you'd like to accomplish. We set three goals in our challenge group, but you can set up to six on the tracker. Wondering how to get started? Keep reading! EASY GOAL SETTING First - think BIG picture. For example, I have two main goals: 1. Be Healthy & Trim - I love horseback riding. It's a great love and passion of mine. I have a certain size saddle I want to fit into. I can't at my current size. That's why 'trim' is on my list. Healthy encompasses the rest of my life. Homesteading, parenting, daughter-ing, wife-ing, friend-ing - I want to be available and able to move and participate. 2. Write - Writing has been a passion of mine since I can remember. I've been writing stories my whole life. I'm ready to really focus on it now. I need to make it a priority. Second, identify tasks you could do to meet those goals. For my goals, I could write regularly, exercise more, eat less/better, get more sleep, drink more water. Third, break each task down in general actions. My actions would look like this: Walk (this helps me sleep better as well) Eat whole foods plant based, no snacks Get up early to write (this helps me get to bed early) Drink a gallon of water each day Finally, create a list of action items that are MEASURABLE & SPECIFIC. My specific action items, along with how I can measure 'success', look like this:
While that list seems long, I've been working on the walking, eating and snack-limiting already, so really it's just the writing topic, core exercises, and water that are new. START SMALL It's important not to overwhelm yourself. Start small. When I first began 5 months ago, my only goal was to limit my food. I did that goal for 48 days. My next goal-setting challenge was to walk and eat for health. My third goal-setting added another. And so on. Start small. Make your goals MEASURABLE. Make them 25% less than what you think you can do. Our ultimate purpose is to build the muscles of discipline and repetition. PRAY FIRST Most importantly, PRAY FIRST. Ask God what you need to work on . If you think you know, ask anyway. Read through Romans chapters 4 and 5 over the next few days (I really like The Message translation) and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you. I'm looking forward to starting our Grace & Goals study on Monday morning! See you then! If you would like to join our online challenge group, you just need a free MeWe account, and then click on this link: Rosalyn's 3 for 30 Challenge
Join me here beginning Feb 5 for a new serial devotional study: Grace & Goals
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Grace & Goals
A 30-day serial devotional to accompany the 3 for 30 Challenges. ArchivesCategories |