January - A Great Time for Change

I love the month of January because I feel this month gives me an opportunity to start over. I set goals each year for my personal life and ministry. Some of those goals I have reached and others fell by the wayside. January is like a clean slate for me to write on what I hope to accomplish this year.

I read that you can set most of your goals through the scripture Luke 2:52 - "Jesus increased in wisdom, stature, favor with God and favor with man."  There are four areas of life in this verse.

• Increase in wisdom - this is our mental life the part that pertains to our mind and continuing to learn. It may be reading more on certain subjects or taking some classes.
• Increase in stature - this is our physical life, keeping our body healthy by diet, exercise, reduced stress, and good rest.
• Increase in favor with God - this is our spiritual life, having a daily Bible reading, prayer, church attendance, being kind and doing for others.
• Increase in favor with man - this is our social life, having right relationships with others, doing our best to be at peace with all men, being connected with a group of people that will sharpen us. 

All of our goals should be SMART which is an acrostic that stand for:
S -  Specific
M - Measurable
A -  Attainable
R -  Realistic
T -  Tangible

Join me and set at least three goals in each of these categories.  Some of my goals for 2012, using Luke 2:52 are:

Increase in wisdom:

1. Take a Word Office Suite class. I have never taken any computer classes, just had people help me get around on the computer, but would like to learn it correctly. 
2. I want to learn to organize all 12,500 pictures I have stored on my computer.
3. Read a biography of a great leader each month.

Increase in stature:

1. Become an aerobics instructor (just kidding) instead I would like to join the senior adults who walk at the mall. That way I have no weather related excuses to not exercise.
2. Join about half or more of the American people and lose some excess weight.
3. Add at least one new healthy recipe to our diet each week. I have a tendency to eat the same foods over and over.

Increase in favor God:

1. Read through the Bible again this year.
2. Get back memorizing scriptures, one a week so I will have 52 new scriptures memorized before the year is over.
3. Continue to share my faith in one on one situations, social media, in my blog and everywhere I go.

Increase in favor with man:

1. Start a senior adult couples monthly night out so others couples can meet new friends.
2. Love others with unconditional love just as God loves me.
3. Enlarge my circle of love by inviting a different couple over for dinner each month.

Is it time to change some things in your life? I can't think of a better time for change than the beginning of 2012. Please post a comment and let me know if this blog post helped you in setting your goals.


Until next time, remember most of life is everyday!