Onward and Upward
How cool is it that I get to write Reflection Sunday on the first day of a brand new year? It’s pretty cool. And honestly a lot of pressure to say something profound and thought-provoking.
So let’s reflect on 2016. I know that for a lot of people, it was a rollercoaster of a year. We’ve said goodbye to a lot of favorite celebrities and we’ve faced a lot of unrest in our country. But in my personal life, it’s been a pretty good year, all things considered.
I decided to look back at my goals from last year and thought it might be interesting to go through them and maybe create some new goals for 2017!
- Read More. I definitely read more in 2016, a lot more. And I loved it. I’m excited to continue this trend in the coming year.
- Focus of the word: Faithfulness. Yes. This was the first year I decided to focus on a specific word, and it’s something I have every intention of continuing. There were so many times when God showed His faithfulness to me and I made a point of focusing my heart towards that faithfulness.
- Be bold in the publishing world. I did not do this. This was a fail. Big time. But that’s okay! It’s an opportunity to grow.
- Write more. I also did not do this. Not really. I did a lot of writing for this blog, but didn’t do a lot of creative writing. I did not accomplish NaNoWriMo. Which I regret. So, 2017 will be better. I’m determined.
- Get a new job. Yes! Yes! Yes! I did this, and it has been such a blessing. I miss the other job, but having more financial stability is huge.
- Self-sacrifice. I don’t think this is an item I can ever mark of the checklist. This is something that I will have to continue to work on—it’s a heart issue.
Some of these things are going to be bumped down the list for 2017. Without further ado, here is the list for the New Year!
- Be bold in the publishing world. This needs to happen, and that is just the long and short of it. There is a fear of failure that I need to overcome, but I need to put myself in the position where I can fail first. Not putting myself out there is just as bad as failing. So. It needs to happen (my grad school buddies will all agree).
- Write more. See number one? The same applies here.
- Save more. I’m in a better place this January than I was last January. I don’t have anxiety about paying my bills, which is so good. So now that I’m out of the panic zone I can shift my focus.
- Be more confident. This is something I started working on last year, but need to continue on this path. I feel like I’ve already made huge strides, but there are still moments where I get nervous…moments when I have no reason to be nervous (like stepping into the publishing world…).
- Focus on the word: Stewardship. This is one of those old words that we (I) don’t always think about. But it’s one of those words that resonates with me—and I know that stems from my love for Tolkien and how the Stewards of Gondor were responsible for looking after the country until the true King returned… I know that’s why I like this word. Yes. I’m a nerd. So, this year I want to focus on this word and how, as a Christian, I am responsible for taking care of things in this life until my King has returned.
I am so looking forward to this year, and I’m looking forward to stepping out and stepping up. Each year is an opportunity for growth, and I’m excited for whatever lessons God has in store for me in the months to come.
