Fight for your Goals by Winning the Week!
If you know what areas of your life to improve this year, you are well on your way to the best year ever. At this point, you have probably set some very specific accomplishments that will prove that progress. Good for you! By now you are hopefully well on your way to that first rung, the January checkpoint of progress. But if you want it to hold all year long, we need to talk about a big secret.
It's all about winning the week! Here's my promise to you: if you learn the cadence of a seven day week, and how to maximize incremental progress on a seven day cycle... there is nothing you cannot accomplish with God's support!
Our newest episode, "Winning the Week," has already broken most of that down for you. If you haven't yet checked that out, you can go straight to the podcast here. Instead of recapping, let me share with you a few bonus ideas and examples to assist you in making the most of your next seven day cycle.
It is likely that you and I share a great many goals. We want to be stronger Christians. We want to build a stronger family connection. We want to get closer to God. The details may vary, but most of us are in the same proverbial boat.
But how does a solid weekly approach really help us with those things? Well, something as simple as a journal can go a long way. If you work through the ESM 3-Month Journal, each day will include prayers and Scripture and frogs to eat and daily highlights. We talked about that in this week's episode. But let me give you some additional things to consider on a day by day basis.
Sunday - This is a day of worship and rest for most of us. But this usually means you are at home and around your family. So don't miss a great chance to eat a frog at home in the garage, or have a daily highlight (in addition to worship) by doing something enjoyable with your family.
Monday - Oh boy. Everybody hates Mondays. Actually, not everybody. This is our best chance to jump out ahead of the game. This is a great day to carve out 30 minutes to review the sermons from Sunday in personal study. If you are out for work or school, why not go ahead and eat a frog by going to the grocery store or to the bank?
Tuesday-Thursday - Don't get lost in the middle of the week. These are three really useful days! Carve at least one of these evenings out to as a chance to sit down with your family to watch a movie or play a board game. Mixed into all of this are some cards you could write to friends or emails sent to church visitors. Oh, and don't forget Wednesday night! My highlight in the midweek is very often needful conversations with brethren at church services on Wednesday nights.
Friday - Don't stop now. And don't cruise in. Save the cruising for Saturday. Finish strong. Set aside another half hour for Bible study. Look back over the week and see how much service you've done for others. If that category is thin, make a real effort to do something for someone else before the weekend!
Saturday - You made it! Except this Saturday may be different than in week's past. This time you have knocked out so many frogs and made every day before it valuable in Christ. So you may actually be able to relax without feeling like you are losing ground. Go ahead and mix in a frog amidst enjoyment of a hobby. And make sure to do one spiritual thing that makes the day worth remembering. Add into that clear opportunities to enjoy your family, and you've got your self a fantastic ending to a a great week!
Our next episode is titled "Honoring Your Values." Sometimes our goals and efforts are successful, but they don't feel rewarding. Accomplishments are only rewarding if they align with our values. Let's not waste effort on things that don't connect with who we are. The bigger question may be: having you identified your values? Let's dig in on that Monday!
