“The Lord God is a sun and shield, no good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.”  ~ Psalm 84

“What good is it for a man to gain the whole world yet lose his soul?”-somewhere in the Bible

” Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” ~Psalm 37:4

I. Can’t.Wait. Debt-free, in a rockin’ bod, with a career I’m passionate about? Yes, please! James Franco in my bed? (We’re married, and he loves Jesus. My dream. Back off.) Sign me up! The sky is the limit if I want. Seriously, I could be a pilot. Or a stewardess (air hostess?).

My biggest goal has to be to approach my dreams with hard work, intensity, and open hands. I am extremely hyped to see God open doors and answer prayer, and at the same time I have to be willing to allow God to tell me no. When I gave my life back to God, I told Him he could have all of me. I mean it. So, my dreams can’t become more important to me than following His direction. My motives need to be for my joy, but His purposes. I think I am in a healthy balance right now, because prayer is incorporated big time in everything I am doing, but I know how easy it is for me to let my vision drift on to lesser things. If I am working hard, I want to know that the WHY is right, then I can get working on the HOW.

“What if you spend your whole life climbing a ladder only to get to the top and realize it’s up against the wrong house?” – Dr. Stephen Covey

I am determined to not leave God out of any part. If he’s not in something, then I don’t need to be. This goes for relationships, jobs, where I give my time and energy, all of it.  Open hands.

Here’s my progress! So far, I have been able to keep up with my schedule!

Having practical, manageable steps in writing has been tremendously helpful and motivating. I can actually keep track of what I am accomplishing! I have worked out 9 of 9 days, kept on budget, with 30.00 a week for groceries and only 10.00 a week for “fun”, which isn’t. I have put away a third of an emergency fund, after reading several of Dave Ramsey’s awesome books on how to get your finances in order and get out of debt! I highly recommend “The Total Money Makeover”. I am hopeful about my financial future for the first time in quite a while. I have lost a few pounds, saved a few bucks, and hope to keep this momentum going. I also created an online group for support and encouragement in setting goals and achieving them! The name is, amazingly enough, “Reaching Goals Together” and I’d love to add you if you want to join!

Here are several of my goals, just for the sake of posterity:

1.Lose 352 pounds

Practical application:  Menu planning and working out 5x a week

2.Stop being a freaking waitress

Practical application: Work hard to grow my Pampered Chef business, adding team members and shows, while also pursuing revelation, skills and knowledge of my true calling in life.

3.See God like never before

Practical application: pray and obey like never before

4.Get out of debt

Practical application: Work with intensity to pay off debt, and say no to crap I don’t need. Tithe and save and be smart. Self control and discipline.

5. Post embarrassing pictures of myself on the internet.

Practical application:

See ya next Thursday!
Ang