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

Margin in Life

I learned to type on a manual typewriter. I know that ages me but I was about 10 or maybe 12 when I learned to type. I remember sitting at the typewriter and practicing jjff kkdd llss ;;aa as I learned the home row. As you began typing, one of the things that you needed to do was set the margins. Then with your fingers on the home row and you would begin typing. As you get near the end of the line, a little bell would chime telling you that you needed to move to the next line. You physically had to reach up and move the lever so the paper would go to the next line. If you did not do this when the bell chimed, you could just keep typing and go into the margin and then even off the page. What is typed beyond the page is unreadable.

Margins are there to give space around a document. It gives white space to make the document easier to read.

Margin in life gives us space. It gives space to have down time, space to reflect, and space to be still. Margin in life allows us be able to meet needs in our own live or in the lives of others. Margin allows us to have time for the unplanned and unexpected.

Do you push each day to see how much you can get done? Do you have a to do list that is longer than possible to do in a day or week?

Margin doesn't just happen. You need to plan margin into life. Give yourself time to sit, time to dream, time to reflect. Sit and meditate on God's word, pondering who God is and what he wants you to do.

Look at your week and see when you can add margin into the day. Use the margin to refresh yourself, spend time in prayer or use the margin in ministering and serving others. Have margin so that the unexpected of life doesn't push you to the maximum and you have no extra time.

Do you have margin planned in your week? How do you use the margin that you have?

Beth

Meal Planning Evening

For me this began in January when I was talking to a friend and said, "I want a brainless meal plan." I know there are meal plans that you can buy but I am cheap and find that they don't work with our options here. My friend said, "Why don't you create a meal plan for the month." That was all the challenge that I needed I printed a calendar page and sat down and prepared a menu for a month. I was in love. I loved having a plan. I loved knowing what was scheduled. I loved feeling like I could balance my meals both nutrition and cost.

A few weeks ago my small group was together to fix some meals for one of the new mums. I think we did more coffee drinking and talking than fixing meals. In the conversation meal planning came up and the challenges so I decided to host a meal planning evening.

The theme for this event was quick and easy. Everyone was asked to bring 8 copies of a quick and easy meal. My goal for the evening was every to have a menu for a week.

The question I asked as we began was, "Why do you want to plan meals?" Is it to reduce your stress, reduce your grocery budget, improve nutrition, to easily be able to answer the question, "what is for dinner" or maybe you just came to get out of the house on a Monday evening. Knowing why you want to do something helps.

Then for fun we played match the person to the meal. Everyone wrote the last meal they prepared and we matched the meal to the person. We scored 100% on that.

When I began my monthly meal plan, I made a worksheet of as many meals as I could think about in different categories. So I gave everyone 3 - 4 minutes to do that based on whatever categories they wanted. The winner got 17 meals listed and won a prize from the prize table.

I had printed a collection of free menu planning pages that I had printed off the internet. Everyone picked a page and got to work planning their meals.

Things are better with friends. So people were sharing other meal ideas, asking for a recipe for fish, giving ideas for where to buy things, and just chatting. I think everyone walked away with a menu for a week. We all have some new recipes to try -- Chicken and Tarragon bake, Mum's Secret Chicken curry, Coconut Thai curry, Oven-baked risotto, Japanese Curry and a sausage recipe.

Yes, curry is a favourite dish here.

We also shared our "go to" cookbook. I have a few books to add to my list, Bill's Everyday Asian, Nigella Express. Delia's Complete Cookery was the "go to" book for two people. That is one that I have purchased since moving here and I do use it quite a bit.

I am already beginning to think of my next event.

Beth