I fell into bed feeling overwhelmed and discouraged. It had been another day of feeling like a failure — AGAIN. All those New Year’s resolutions, good intentions, and goals lay broken beside me.
I wondered if I would ever be able to intentionally manage my busy life, rather than letting life manage me, while my priorities were slowly replaced by the urgency of what each day brought.
Maybe you can relate.
Are New Year’s resolutions harmful?
Do you ever go to bed at night feeling overwhelmed and discouraged like this? Do you make New Year’s resolutions each year, only to find that you fail to keep them?
Don’t feel TOO bad, because only 8% of people are successful in achieving their New Year’s resolutions each year.
That’s why you shouldn’t make New Year’s resolutions.
It’s time to look for a new approach to accomplishing the goals and priorities that God has placed on your heart.
Rather than writing a long list of goals and resolutions, it would be better to narrow it down to the most important things, and then determine what steps or actions you need to take in order to live INTENTIONALLY in those areas.
Knowing what your priorities are and acting on them consistently are two different things! The biggest thing that hinders me personally, is a failure to intentionally plan HOW I’m going to accomplish those goals.
Why should you not set New Year’s resolutions?
Nothing gets done unless I am intentional.
Often life gets busy, and because we have failed to develop intentional daily habits to help us accomplish our goals, we fall into the trap of being pulled in too many directions, which leads to neglecting our priorities. That in turn leads to guilt and discouragement.
I got to the point where I felt totally overwhelmed and stressed with all that was going on in my life, and though I kept struggling to get back on track, I couldn’t seem to make any headway.
I asked myself how I got to this place, and how to get out of it.
One night while struggling with those very thoughts, I cried out to God asking Him to show me how to balance things and get back on track with my priorities.
He spoke to me very clearly about these areas that I need to work on:
- My Heart and relationship with Him
- My Health
- My Home – relationships and home management
- My Time Management
- My Prayer Life
I have found that when my heart is right with God, I will then have the wisdom and strength to work on taking care of myself physically, which enables me to have a greater ability to care for my home and family.
I have been working on baby steps to get my heart, health, and home in better shape.
No more long list of New Year’s resolutions for me, but rather intentional steps to get me doing better in each area, one area at a time.
What can I do instead of New Year’s resolutions?
By developing daily habits and disciplines in each area before moving on to the next one.
Habits usually take 21 days to develop, so rather than try to make several improvements in each of the three areas, I realized it worked MUCH BETTER to start small with one or two changes till they developed into habits, before moving on to more changes.
The result? Habits are developing as I live intentionally, and I no longer feel so stressed and overwhelmed. Even better, I don’t feel like a failure anymore.
Are you ready to be intentional, and follow through on your goals and priorities by taking little steps that develop habits?
If so, check out this new practical and encouraging course, designed to walk you step-by-step through the process of establishing daily habits that will help you begin to live intentionally, and manage all the important areas of your life better.
INTENTIONAL LIVING — Life Management For Busy Moms
Whether you need to work on your relationship with God, take better care of your body, improve the relationships in your home, manage your time better, or be more intentional in your prayer life, the Intentional Living Course will help you.
Included in the course:
SIX MODULES:
- Your Heart — relationship with God and His Word
- Your Health — steps to better caring for yourself, and the body God has given you
- Your Home — building strong relationships, and one on managing your housekeeping
- Your Home — managing your home
- Your Time — managing your time in order to better achieve your priorities and goals
- Your Prayer Life –maintaining it all with the power of intentional prayer
Each module will contain:
- Three or more videos
- Charts to guide you, and help you track your progress
- Seven disciplines to develop in each area
- A workbook (with video content for those who prefer reading to watching) that will guide you through each step
- Action Steps to intentionally develop habits in each of the areas
USE COUPON CODE Tools25 to save 25% on the course!
Those who register will also be invited to join a private Facebook group where I will be available to answer your questions and encourage you as you go through the course.
Joining the group will give you the opportunity to share your struggles and successes, as well as get to know others who are going through the challenge at the same time.
You don’t have to live in an overwhelmed state while failing to live intentionally. This course will get you started in the right direction with manageable steps and the tools you need.
Don’t set the same goals you’ve been setting every year. Make those changes happen this year by being intentional!
If you’re tired of struggling to manage your life well and are ready to live more intentionally, join me for this course, and start getting your life and priorities back on track.
One Response
We’ve all been there. There are times when we just can’t see where we are anymore. . . everything looks so clumsy and cloudy. That’s when we cry to God. He’s always there to help, guide, protect and lead us in the right direction.
I am not a big fan of resolutions, but I like to have a list of things I’d like to have done at the end of a season. I agree with you on having a daily target. That helps to fight away depression and discouragement in the long run.
Merry Christmas 🙂
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