Statcounter

Thursday, January 1, 2009

15 words for 2009

I'd been thinking for a while of starting a blog, and this blog post was the catalyst to stop thinking about doing it perfectly and to simply start writing..

As 2008 draws to a close, many of my zero or so readers are contemplating New Year's resolutions that will be broken by the time I finally finish this post on January 2. For the past week or so. I've thought and prayed about what things needed to recieve my focus in 2009 and, more importantly, how i could actually make sure that my focus did, in fact, change. Thus, 15 words was born. Without further adieu, here are the 15 words (followed by a brief description without which none of the 15 words will make any sense).

Be a blessing
Do it now
Share the Gospel
Read and pray
Sock it away

1. Be a blessing. I make everyone around me miserable when i grumble and complain instead of appreciating God's goodness. My life is too good to selfishly drag everyone's mood down. It's time to seek ways of blessing and serving those around me, starting with my family,

2. Do it now. Procrastination makes everything hard. It's time for a new attitude.

3. Share the Gospel. The #1 reason I exist is to share the good news that God offers complete forgiveness of sins and everlasting life to all of us through Jesus' death on the cross on our behalf. Yet very little of my 2008 was spent seeking the Lord for and seizing opportunities to share this good news.

4. Read and pray. If Jesus withdrew from all He had to do to be alone with the Father to pray and have His strength renewed, what makes me think I can be strong enough to meet the challenges i face without this as a priority? My marriage is alive and well when i pray with my wife, and my son needs to have a dad who's constantly in touch with the Father and a man who is in God's word daily.

5. Sock it away. I want a little, at least, of every paycheck in savings. The first goal is a one-moth buffer. My family used to have this peace of mind and, Lord-willing, we will have it again soon.

There you have it. Follow my progress and hopefully you'll be encouraged to press on, keep on and never give up. Let's make 2009 one to remember. No regrets and no excuses.

2 comments:

  1. Wow Jesse! You have inspired me so much! I am really happy you decided to blog! I look forward to reading more. And yes... you do have a faithful follower of your blog! LOL! I love the way you express yourself. I know for me when I can journal my thoughts, even though not too many read it, it is still therapy for me to at least release what is on my heart. God is my faithful blog follower so He understands if I need to share or vent my frustration or whatever. Welcome to blog world!

    God bless,
    Yvette

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Jesse! Just letting you know I popped in again and read your "15 Words" again. It is still so encouraging to read. Hope it is still working for you! Looking forward to more of your blogging!

    God Bless,
    Yvette

    ReplyDelete