Logistics and Biblical Counselling - Combining Two Different Things

I thought I would pause in all the instructional information posts and just share a bit about me and my heart as to why I am writing A Fruitful Year. I am not sure that this is necessarily an easier topic to write about but it will give you a break from feeling like all I am doing is telling you what you need to do. I shared a bit of the story behind A Fruitful Year here. Go read that and hopefully I will not repeat myself.

Grab a cup of coffee or tea or just a glass of water. Coffee is my drink of choice.

I am a planner. I love having a plan.  I spent a number of years working in manufacturing logistics which included scheduling production and shipping finished goods to meet orders. I was a logistics manager. Most of that time I was working in an office in Asia. Part of my job was to consider capacity, lead-times, demand, all with the goal of getting a finished product to the retailer in a timely manner.

So that is a bit of my planning background. I love to do lists and being able to tick off the things as they are finished. Planning and goal setting is a big part of A Fruitful Year but the deeper part if our relationship with God.

It was while I was living and working in Asia that I took my first Biblical Counselling course. That was the beginning of my Biblical Counselling studies. I have since done further studies. The hardest part about that are the difficult things I learn about myself. The best part about that are the difficult things I learn about myself. Learning these things helped me to grow in the Lord. I want to encourage women to grow in the Lord.

I write from my experiences. I write from what I have learned about God. I write because I need this. I feel that A Fruitful Year brings those two things together.

My prayer is as you follow along this year you will be encouraged to grow and also get things done.

So if we were sitting having coffee, what questions would you ask me?


Beth

You Need a Plan

You need a plan. You took the time to write a goal. You need a plan. 

A big part of accomplishing your goal is your plan for that goal. Goals take time. Goals take work. Sometimes Goals require some money. Goals take diligence and discipline. You need a plan on how you will reach the goal.

One of the things that I think you need to consider before making plans for your goals is the events and things scheduled for the year. If you have a two-week holiday in the summer that is going to reduce how much time you have to work on some of the goals. Look at your calendar and see what is already scheduled for the year. Those things might have some tasks associated with the event.

Once you have an idea of how much time you have available. Look at your goal. How much time do you anticipate it will take to accomplish that goal? Then plan time and do it. Most of the goals are things that we will be working on over months. We need a plan and also as we are working the plan we are seeing progress.

How do you plan your goal? One way is simply divide the goal into 12 and do 1/12 each month. For some goals that might work but you also need to consider that some months you might not have the time to devote to the goal.

Depending on the goal it might make sense to have a weekly task that will work you towards the goal.

You might need a month or two where you are focusing on a specific goal or goals. Get a big portion of it done. Winter months are perfect for doing some of those indoor activities. See how much you can get done before spring arrives.

Look at the goals that you have written. Write a plan for how you will accomplish that goal.

Are you thinking that writing the plan will take time that you could actually be working on the goal? Yes, it might take a bit of time but the plan will help you to know what needs to be done and how to do it. The plan is a bit like the map. A map helps to guide to from your location to your destination.

We can set goals and we can plan. I think those are good things but we need to remember that God is in charge of our plans. He can change our plans. His plans for our life are perfect.

We do the best we can with the bits of knowledge that we have but God is all-knowing.

To live A Fruitful Year we need to be abiding. As part of the abiding, we need to be listening to the Spirit and checking our goals and plans to be sure that we are following God’s ways. This is not just at the beginning of the year but throughout the year. Abide in Christ and listen to the Spirit.

Hold your plans loosely in your hands. Be willing to change the plan for the day, the week or even the whole goal if God calls you do so. Remember the words from James 4:13-16, specifically verse 15. 

When your plans change, trust that God is working and he has a better plan and goal for you at this time. 

Do you have plans for how you will reach your goals? Have you written these down?

Beth

Knowing Yourself - Difficult but Necessary

I live with a family that plays chess. The other week I sat and played a game. I know how the pieces move but not much more. As I sat there, I was continually looking at my pieces and the pieces of my opponent. Since it was me playing it wasn’t long and I had lots less pieces than my opponent. I was trying and was considering the strength of the piece and what it could do to help me. I know that it might require a piece to sacrifice so that I could reach the goal. I lost the chess game but hopefully something that I learned in the game will be helpful.

Some of those same truths apply in our lives. We need to be looking at ourselves and knowing our strengths. We need to know the things that are opposing us that will cause us to struggle. What are some of those things that can cause us to not do and be all that God wants.

Some of the opponents that you might be facing in your own life could be:

• Comparison – I think this is the comparing yourself to others. It could be hearing someone else’s goal and just making it your goal without thinking. It could be hearing someone share how something worked for them and thinking that will be the answer for you as well.

• Laziness - It is simply not doing what needs to be done. Sitting around. Chilling, vegging, at times that can be good. Rest is needed but laziness is not rest.

• Distraction – Doing all kinds of things but not doing what needs to be done. It is a bit like laziness. There is action but it is not moving in the towards the goal.

• Perfectionism – Focusing so much on the perfect outcome that nothing gets done.

As we begin this year, let’s strengthen our offense. 

• Contentment is knowing yourself, what works for you and being willing to stick with that. This is the opposite of comparison. Know what works in your family relationships. Don’t be swayed by the latest pin that says, “This is the way to manage your laundry”.

• Diligence is working hard. Do it. Completing the task. Do not allow laziness to take over.

• Focus on the task. We live in a world that throws distractions at us faster than we can count. It requires disciple to focus. Focus and follow through to the end.

• Excellence is doing the best that you can with the tools that you have. You might have limitations but take the limitations and do the best that you can.

Take some time at the beginning of the year to search you heart. Ask God to search your heart, to show you what needs to change. He knows you. He loves you. He wants you to grow.

After you have searched your heart, ask God for the help as you strive to abide in him and grow in this area.

What opponents do you face? 

Beth

Goal Setting - Grow and reach the target

Ready. Aim. Wait. Stop. If there is no target, why continue to shot. You need a target. Do you have a goal? What are your goals for this year?

Maybe before we get to writing goals we need to just talk about what a goal is. Very simply a goal is something you want to achieve. A goal is something that you will work towards. A goal helps to guide your actions and decisions.

How do you decide on goals? You can’t do everything. You are limited in time and resources. So how do you decide. Here are some questions to help you:

What does God want me to do?

What would bless those around me?

What are my current responsibilities? How can I grow or improve in those areas?

What are some changes that I want do see in my life?

What is causing me stress? Is there something that can be done about that?

What do I have to achieve?

Using those questions and thinking of other things you can begin to brainstorm some ideas. Just write them all down. Some will get tossed. Some will get adjusted and some will become goals.

If you are new to setting goals, I would suggest just 3-5 goals to begin. As you complete those goals, you can add more. You can add more goals through the year.

Look at your goals. Have you prayed about these goals? Do you know why you choose that goal? What is the motivation? Knowing that your goals are what God wants will motivate you. Knowing that will help you keep going when it gets difficult.

One of the helpful things on the internet for evaluating goals is SMART.  

                              Specific

                              Measurable

                              Attainable

                              Realistic

                              Timely

Let me give you a simple example. In 2016 my goal was to track the number of books I read that year. I wrote the titles in my planner. At the end of the year, I knew how many books I had read.  In 2017 my goal was to read more books then I did in 2016. So based on that I knew what I am able to do if I focused on that. I do have a reading goal for this 2018 but I am still trying to decide how much time I want to devote to reading.

In 2016 my specific goal was record books read in 2016. It was measureable by looking at the list I wrote. It was attainable because it was easy to just write down. It was realistic in that I enjoy reading and value reading. It was timely in the sense that it was for the year.

Now at the beginning of 2018 I want to have a specific reading goal which I will measure by keeping a list. I am struggling with the specifics because I want it to be realistic and attainable.

Not all your goals should be goals that stretch you. I think that is why I have paused in figuring how my specific reading goal for 2018.

Goals should help you draw closer to God, encourage and bless those around you. Goals are to help you grow. Enjoy them.

My prayer for you is that this year you will grow. 

Do you have goals for 2018? Are they written down so you can refer to them?

Beth