Developing a Personal Mission Statement

It's Monday again and I have been trying to make it a habit to partake in Multitude Mondays at A Holy Experience. Multitude Mondays encourages us, as women and children of the King, to thank God for all the gifts He gives us.

I also like to partake in Project Mondays over At the Well and they are challenging their readers to create a personal mission statement.

So as I was contemplating today's post, I thought about how these two blog link ups are intertwined.

I thank God for the roles He has given me as David's wife and companion, as Eian and Elias' mom, keeper of this household, keeper of this one physical body I have, my roles as daughter, sister, friend, etc.

If I believe God is ALL powerful, ALL knowing, ALL loving, and ALWAYS in control then I must believe that the people in my life are put here for a reason. They are here for a purpose and for an opportunity to let the light of Christ shine through me and into them.

My ultimate goal and purpose for this site is to walk along side all of you reading and encourage you to fill YOUR roles more passionately and intentionally and allow this desire to truly SIMPLIFY your life.

When we focus on what God has designed us to do, and purpose ourselves by aligning our desires appropriately, then that's when we find real fulfillment. This has been my experience anyway.

Believe me though, I am by no means saying I have it all together or that I have even had a day recently where I have really felt completely fulfilled. And we may not really ever feel this until the day the Lord calls us home but I do know that feeling like I've missed the mark on impacting the lives of those I love in a positive way, on a regular basis is NOT what God wants.

I am simply admitting I recognize this truth. So how can this knowledge be implemented? How can I give thanks to God for these roles? How can He be ultimately glorified?

God has been slowly revealing to me (or maybe I've just been slow to catch on) that all these desires to fill my roles more purposefully need to be outlined somehow to keep me on track. I think we all suffer from mild cases of ADHD, or at least I do, and it's so easy for me to get distracted.

I was ecstatic to see that the Project over At the Well was developing a personal mission statement.

I honestly had just asked David last night what he felt were some important tasks needing finished. God bless him but he wasn't much help! He couldn't really think of anything other than working with Eian to finish his diorama for school. I was looking for guidance and direction because I have really been feeling like my wheels are spinning lately.

It dawned on me, as I was washing dishes last night (my daydreaming time) that while I think it's important to include your spouse, the best way to find guidance in prioritizing and finding purpose is asking God. I admit I do not do this nearly as often as I should. So with my arms wrist deep in dish water, I did just that.

Today seems a little more clear thanks to the Lord and I do not think it was just a "coincidence" that today's At the Well project is Developing a Personal Misson Statement.

I will be prayerfully contemplating, organizing, and implementing mine. Won't you join me? What areas of your life are you feeling unproductive in? What are some practical ways you can fulfill your roles more effectively?

Is it making yourself removed from that never ending to do list and purposefully spend a chunk of time with your kids, is it purposefully planning to spend an hour alone with your husband tonight by getting the kiddos to bed early and staying OFF the computer, is it purposefully getting to bed on time so you can rise before the kids and make time for God, is it purposefully planning to make healthier food choices...? So I guess you can see these are a few of mine but I want to hear from YOU!

What can you do in your life NOW to give thanks to God by living more purposefully in the roles He has given YOU?

Lessons In Love- Be Transparent

So I found another blog that hosts Lessons In Love Saturdays. Yes it's becoming a sickness, blogofever! This one is yet another great tool for me though to honor my husband

and the Lord by sharing what I have learned from my three years married, but nearly nine years total with my wonderful man!

This week's topic for me is to be transparent. We continue to hear that a secret to a great marriage is that yucky word for us who are challenged in this, yep you guessed it....Communication!!! One thing I've learned in my own marriage is that I can't expect my husband to communicate with me if I'm not open and honest with him, hence being transparent.

So what does being transparent look like in a marriage? A wise pastor's wife at church told me if I want to honor God by being a Godly wife I have to help my husband be the leader. Most men I've been told, have a built in or God given desire to lead, but that desire diminishes each time a wife criticizes, belittles (even if you think you're just joking, it's not a joke to him), continually nags (which really means you don't have faith in or no trust in your husband) or under appreciates her husband.

A way to nurture his God given desire to lead is by being his biggest supporter and helper. Ironically enough one of the best ways, my pastor's wife told me, to help him to lead is by showing him how to help you. Weird huh? Now I'm not talking help as in having him do your honey do list! I'm talking emotionally and then yes we're back to my point of being transparent. Most men cannot confidently lead his wife if he doesn't feel he knows what makes her tick. If he doesn't really know his wife then he'll be less likely to be secure in making big decisions in the home. He may feel as if he'll be criticized by you and so on.

So see ladies... Our men feel secure when we gently help them to see what we need from them which makes us better helpers! I sure hope I didn't just confuse everyone and if I did, then just shoot me an email.

Happy Communicating!

The Fireproof Movie

Oh I cannot wait to see the movie, Fireproof. We may have to wait until January when it comes out on dvd though. Oh well, I can live through those of you who've seen it. So share your reviews with me if you've seen it. I would love to hear them. I know a few who've seen it and just loved it. I over heard one woman at church say her husband even got a little choked up!

It's so awesome to see that God is using a church body from Georgia to make His movies! I also heard on the radio that the movie is #4 in the country! So go see your movie with your hubby or heck even if you aren't married, you should go! They interviewed one woman who went and isn't married but dating. She thought it was great to see some of the pitfalls couples can get in and felt like she now has an advantage to "fireproof" her future marriage.

So my anticipation grows and I look forward to snuggling on the couch with David when the dvd's released!