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The Best You: Following God’s Plan For Your Life

The best you is the one God created you to be! TriciaGoyer.com

The new year is here! What resolutions are at the top of your list? Eat better. Exercise once a day. Volunteer more. Before you create a whole new you for 2017, take some time to consider what’s fueling your goals. For many women, comparison is primary motivator.

Have you ever compared yourself with other women–other moms or co-workers–and felt like you didn’t match up? (Guilty).

We call it the comparison game, but in the end we are the big losers.

Do you feel discouraged? Do you see others having success at all levels and wonder when it will be your turn? Are you ready to fold your cards and walk away?

We all know we are special creations, unique and precious to God. Yet why do we struggle with comparing our lives, our bodies, our kids, and our talents (or lack of talents) with others? Why do we feel as if we keep passing GO, but we never get that $200?

I often do this with my writing. I find myself comparing my success with others. I look at the bestseller list with longing. I consider the “big” advances and media fan-fare some authors receive, and then I sigh.

I do this with myself. I compare my talents, my disciple, and I especially compare my body. How come my friend can eat anything she wants and stay slim? Why do I have to walk and watch what I eat just to maintain? These thoughts aren’t a game either. They lock me up tight and keep me from caring for and rejoicing with others.

I do this with so many areas of my life. I wonder why the hard stuff comes. I wonder why struggles come my way. Why aren’t my dreams coming true?

In reality, we (me included) need to look past who I “dream” to be and consider God’s dreams instead. God not only knows the game and the rules, He is able to give us the perfect strategies to win … if we just focus on Him, and His plan.

 “God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaks: ‘Exactly as I planned, it will happen. Following my blueprints, it will take shape,” says Isaiah 14:24 (The Message).

The word “planned” here is translated “compare.” It’s as if God has weighed the different possibilities, looked at them from all angles, and then chose the best way. He makes the blueprints . . . then He constructs them into our reality. God created our game of LIFE and then He stacks the cards so that when we turn to Him we’ll always win.

The life we have is the one constructed for us. It’s not the life, body, health, or circumstances we wished we’d had (or hope to having in the coming year). Or the perfect life we can never obtain. But the blueprints and the form He is transforming into reality.

“Remember your history, your long and rich history. I am God, the only God you’ve had or ever will have—from the beginning telling you what the ending will be, all along letting you in on what is going to happen, amazing you,” we read in Isaiah 46:10-11. “I’m in this for the long haul, I’ll do exactly what I set out to do.” (The Message)

It’s OK to have longings and goals. No one can get through life without comparing, but even before we worry about what we desire for our lives, the first step is to not let our dreams motivate us, but instead let His.

God has longings for us even greater than we imagine, and He’s willing to tell us these things as we seek Him out. He knows that comparisons will not get us far, but focusing our eyes on the eternal prize will.

Will you put God’s desires for you above your own this year? Will you seek Him today? Pray. Open your heart. And dare to listen to God’s dreams for you. Ask God to show you what He wants for you this year. There is no comparison in His love for you!

This new year, don’t let your dreams motivate you, but instead let HIS. @TriciaGoyer

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Read full privacy policy here.

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New Self | Ephesians 4:22-24

Looking for a new you? Ephesians 4:22-24 is a great place to start. TriciaGoyer.com

Saturday Scripture

Ephesians 4:22 – 24

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Prayer

Heavenly Father,
Thank you for a new year–a new start. As I look ahead to the opportunities 2017 has to offer, may my dreams and goals be rooted in you. It’s easy to make my resolutions superficial and driven by my insecurities. Give me wisdom and perseverance to become who YOU want me to be.

Looking for a new you? Ephesians 4:22-24 is a great place to start. @TriciaGoyer

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Are you new here? You might want to subscribe to my email updates, or follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, or Instagram.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Read full privacy policy here.

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Is It Time For A Clean Sweep?

Girl cleaning livingroom

Is It Time For a Clean Sweep?

I love the television show Clean Sweep. In the show the contents of a whole room are placed into a person’s driveway, and their things are sorted into piles: Keep, Maybe Keep, and Toss. One of the aspects I love about the show is the way junk is fretted over. Seriously, do you really want to keep those mismatched potholders, that torn and stained rug, or that Duran Duran cassette from 1987? If you have to ask, “What is this?” “Where does it go?” or “What does it do?” perhaps it should betossed.

The truth is, maybe we need to look at our lives and schedule the same way we look at the clutter around our house in little piles or big stacks.

Do you have things cluttering your mind, heart, or time that need to be cleaned out?

I remember one day when my husband encouraged me to do a clean sweep. A busy mom of two toddlers and one school-aged child, I was overwhelmed and exhausted by life. John could see it was taking a toll on me. When he asked me about my day, I muttered and moaned. I had a great husband, a budding career, and good kids . . . so why was I so frustrated? Because I was doing too many “important” things and I was exhausted.

John asked me to sit down with my schedule and list everything I was doing. It was a long list! I wrote down cleaning, caring for kids, cooking, schooling, dance class, sports activities, gardening, Bible study and writing—just to name a few. Then John asked me to use my common sense: “Is this something you love? Something you feel called to?”

As I went over my schedule I realized everything, everything, ranked as a priority. I had given it all equal weight. The things I didn’t like took up just as much time as the things I found joy in . . . and soon the joy had become lost in the clutter.

My wise husband urged me to think through a few questions:

  • What things was I doing because I couldn’t say no?
  • What things had worked for a season but no longer worked for our family?
  •  What things could I hand off to someone else?

As I thought about my needs—and my kids’ needs—as I listened to my heart and my gut, I started making better decisions. Before I took on new responsibilities I considered whom I was most responsible for—my kids. My common sense grew, and I learned to think through why I wanted to do something and where it would fit. Once I started cutting things, I discovered I really cared about the things that were left!

What do you need to cut to make room for what matters? @Tricia Goyer

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What about you? Are you too busy doing too many things? Ask yourself these questions:

  • What things am I doing because I can’t say no?
  • What things worked for a season but no longer work for our family?
  • What things can I hand off to someone else?

Then start cutting away. It’ll be hard, but it’ll be worth it. Not only will your schedule feel freer, but your heart will too. Guaranteed!

Read this post and other great articles over at MomLifeToday.com!

 

Balanced-coverAre you a work-at-home mom raising kids, juggling a career and taking care of family responsibilities with only 24-hour days? Working at home while raising kids and juggling a career and family responsibilities is no easy feat. That’s why I wrote Balanced: Finding Center as a Work-at-Home Mom. Balancing is a process and a journey, one that I have yet to perfect. But between writing more than forty books, raising and homeschooling six kids, being a wife, and being active in my community, I have amassed valuable tips that I shared in Balanced.

 

Download this FREE printable from Balanced to help you figure out what needs cutting in your calendar.

 

BalancedPrintables

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Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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6 {Easy} Habits To Transform Your Year

Beautiful young woman with pen in mouth

Every year I think I’m going to do better and be different—about to-do lists, cleaning, cooking, and spiritual pursuits. I see where I’m falling short, but my efforts only last so long. That’s usually because I try to do too much. Can you relate?

My solution is to incorporate easy habits that make a big difference. None of the things on this list will take a lot of work . . . but each will reap big rewards!

  1. Some weeks it seems as though I’m constantly busy, but I never get the important things done. Can you relate? Solution: Come up with the ONE important thing you need to do that day, and do it. It might be to make a phone call, to make a shopping list for the grocery store, or to spend an hour finishing a work project or cleaning out your closet. Making a long list is overwhelming. Also, we often get so busy doing the easy/urgent things that we don’t get the important things done. When you focus on the one important thing, you’ll be amazed by how much you’ll get done.
  2. Are you ever embarrassed when you need to give someone a ride? “Please excuse the drink cups and junk mail!” The solution? Clean out the car every time you get out of it. You have to start with a clean car (of course). But it only takes an extra minute to clean out the car when you exit. We train our kids to do this too. Yes, crumbs and dust build up, but this one-minute habit will make you not be embarrassed when you have to give someone a ride, and you’ll feel good about it too!
  3. There’s nothing worse than trying to figure out what to make at 5:00 p.m. Want to do better? Plan what you’re having for dinner while you make your breakfast. We try to have dinner together most nights. I’d love to be one of those people who has weekly menu plans, but I’ve never been able to be that organized for more than a week. Yet when I think of what I’m making for dinner, I have time to thaw and prep.

Read the 3 other habits and the rest of this post over at forthefamily.org.

Make your goals stick & incorporate easy habits that make a big difference. @TriciaGoyer

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Are you new here? You might want to subscribe to my email updates, or follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, or Instagram.



Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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