30 December 2011

Life Goals

A new year is about to come. It's always great to review this year, accomplishments and failures, new experiences and idle moments, and see what needs to be changed and get rid of the things that hold us back from living life to the fullest. It's time to set Faith Goals for 2012.
Reading some of my notes, I came across with a few guide to making life goals. I wasn't able to note who wrote it (it's not mine), but I just want to share it here.

 10 Steps to Setting Life Goals 

 "A grandmaster makes the best moves because they are based on what he wants the board to look like ten or twenty moves in the future." - Garry Kasparov

(most people spend more time planning their summer vacation than they do planning their life.) You can set goals that are absolutely unspiritual & you'd be better off spiritually if you didn't accomplish them.
"One of the primary reasons most of us don't accomplish more for the kingdom of God is we didn't have any God-ordained goals we're going after."

Hebrews 11:1 "Faith is being sure of what we hope for." 

 You know why most of us never get what we want? Because we don't know what we want! We're more sure of what we're afraid of than what we're hoping for! 
One of the greatest shortcomings in most of our lives is that we don't know what we want. 

 Proverbs 29:18 "Where there is no vision, the people perish." 

 Vision is a preservative. Goals keep us young. You start dying when you have nothing worth living for. You start living when you find something worth dying for. 

 1. START WITH PRAYER. 
"Dreaming is praying." - Catherine Marshall 
Dreaming is a form of praying and praying is a form of dreaming. 
There is no limit to what this combination of dreams and prayers can achieve. 
If all you do is set selfish goals then you'd be a better person if you don't accomplish them. 
Goal setting is a stewardship issue. 

2. CHECK YOUR MOTIVES
Make sure you're going after your goals for the right reason. 
The Creator wanted us to explore His creation. God couldn't wait until people started exploring planet earth so they could see everything He made. 
Travel can be one way to worship God. 
Here are some motives that "I" think are healthy and holy: 
 a. To honor God
 b. To maximize your potential. It's about taking care of the temple.
 c. To make a difference
 d. It will bring you joy
The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. 

3. GET IDEAS FROM OTHERS 
Goals create what psychologists refer to as "structural tension" in your brain. The brain wants to close the gap between your current reality & your goal. The brain is a goal-seeking organism. If you don't set godly goals, you'll pursue goals of lesser importance. 

4. THINK IN CATEGORIES 
 • family goals • travel goals • physical goals • experience goals • influence goals 
All of them are spiritual 
Physical discipline helps me be more disciplined spiritually. 

5. BE SPECIFIC 
Make goals measurable 
God doesn't answer vague prayers because they don't require any faith and God doesn't get the glory 
I think we're vague because we don't want to hold ourselves accountable. Or we're afraid. 
Goals are dreams with deadlines. 

6. WRITE DOWN YOUR GOALS 
Habakkuk 2:2 "Write down the vision and make it plain on tablets." 
The first step to accomplishing a goal is simply writing it down. 
The shortest pencil is longer than the longest memory. 

7. INCLUDE OTHERS 
It is about shared experiences. It is about creating memories! 

8. CELEBRATE ALONG THE WAY 
The best memories were once goals 
"Ebenezer" means 'hitherto the Lord has helped me.' 
When you accomplish a goal, it is an Ebenezer moment. And you need to celebrate it an commemorate it. 
Celebrate everything you can as much as you can! 

9. THINK BIG 
"The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it; but that it is too low and we reach it." - Michelangelo 
You need some goals, and they better be conceived in prayer, that are absolutely ridiculous. 
By faith you set the goal. 
Work like it depends on you and pray like it depends on God. 
"You want to set a goal that is big enough that in the process you become someone worth-becoming." - Jim Rohn 
You need a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention because it will force you to get on your knees and seek God. 
Big dreams are the best thing for us spiritually. They make us pray. They make us seek God. they force us to love the way we ought to live - in complete dependence on God. 
Big dreams make you into a big person. 
We tend to overestimate what we can do in 2 years and underestimate what we can do in 10 years. 
Think long term! Think big! 

10. KEEP DREAMING 
It's never too late to be who you might have been. 
"One of the best things about aging is being able to watch imagination take over memory." - Harriet Doerr 

Year 2012 will be a great year full of Ebenezer moments! I am expectant an hopefully and prayerfully ready to elevate!

20 December 2011

My December

Here's a series of Christmas celebrations this year!
Christmas Date in Manila with Abby, Gianne and Lyssa  


 Kids Ministry Team 2 Christmas Party 
 
Volunteers Appreciation Night, with GiAnne and Abby. 

 and Christmas Celebration with my Bestfriends at Ace Water Spa. It was Karla's treat for us.