New Week Challenge

Will you take this challenge this week?  

Challenge Yourself To Be Wholly You

What WILL you do today to improve yourself?

Challenge yourself to learn or try something new or different each month.

Grab a book you would never normally read. 

Go somewhere new. 

Sign up for a class. 

Try a new hobby. 

Taste a new food.

Get out of your comfort zone and live your life.

Trying 12 new things a year challenges you in new and fun ways. 

It is not difficult to do and the commitment will make you feel more accomplished.

Keep Going

Don't lose heart. 

Don't lose hope. 

Don't lose faith. 

Don't lose patience. 

Keep asking. 

Keep seeking. 

Keep knocking. 

~Mark Batterson

100 Days To A Better You

To improve yourself, put aside mind numbing activities such as too much time on the computer, social networking, and watching TV, and do something to improve your mind:

read a book

take a free class

learn to do something you have always wanted to do

 play a board game with your family

go for a walk

Use your mind, don't waste it.

Setting Goals

Are you thinking of some goals you want to accomplish in the coming year? Here are a few things that might get your mind going on the right track.  Add specific goals to this list. Write them down, and keep track of them so you can see your accomplishments.  

Conquer Your Fears

What fears do you need to conquer? Take a step of faith today towards overcoming those fears.

Word Challenge, Overcome

The first word I am going to use in this new challenge is OVERCOME. Share with me what this word means to you, how you have overcome, whatever comes to your mind when you see this word. 

At the beginning of the year, I took a challenge of 'pick a word for the year that you want to be your theme,' and I picked overcome.  It has definitely been a theme for me, and I have overcome quite a few fears, challenges, attitudes that held me back.  I still have things to overcome, which has become very obvious the past few days, such as anxiety over unknowns or what if's, but I have overcome a lot in the past few months that used to hold me back.  

Here are three examples of things I have overcome this past year.  There are many more, but these are the big ones:

I started to work out, something I hadn't done at this level in years!  I had walked, done some hiking and bike riding, but I am actually going to the gym 3-4 days a week. The walking and hiking we do have become much easier and much more enjoyable.

There have been some past hurts that I have overcome, and by doing that, I have been more open to letting new people in my life, made new friends, and torn down walls around my heart.  I have become more outgoing, speak up more, and have been blessed with some wonderful new friendships because I overcame the past hurts and scars others left on my heart.  

On my birthday, I went across a narrow, swinging bride that ascends from rock to rock over the Kootenai River in Montana.  Fear had kept me from taking more than two steps on this bridge before.  I don't like heights, although that fear is going away, but heights over moving water, on a narrow, moving bridge was not my idea of fun.  I climbed the steps, determined to overcome this fear, took the first few steps, which are high up, but I was over rocks, not water.  I took a few more steps, slowly, clinging to the cable as tight as possible, and fear swept over me.  My husband and niece were part way across, cheering me on and waiting for me.  I froze for a bit, and just stood there.  I looked up at my niece, who is 8, and did not want her to think it's ok to quit something because of fear, so I took a few more steps.  At this point, one of the three boards under my feet moved, escalating my fear, but kept me moving forward!  When I got about half way across, the fear left, and I enjoyed each step of the journey across that bridge.  It was beautiful.  I felt very accomplished when I hit the stairs on the other side.  I felt free from the fear that had held me back so many other times before.  The trip back across was now easy.  I had overcome by putting fear behind me, and taking a risk to move forward.  With each step moving forward, the fear grew smaller and the confidence grew more and more, and I overcame a barrier that held me back for so many years. 

This only shows about 2/3 of the bridge, it is a long one!  

Take The Step

Sometimes all it takes is making the first step forward.  

Do It Well

Most people do not know what they can do, because all they’re told is what they cannot do. -Zig Ziglar


Spend some time this week focusing on what you can do, and celebrate by doing it well! Encourage those in your life by sharing with them what their gifts are, what they do well, and see how they change.

Priorities

The amount of time you spend with someone or something is an indicator of the value you place on that person or activity. Who or what is the number 1 priority in your life...children, job, God, spouse, friends, TV, Facebook, ministry, health, recreational activities? Take an honest inventory of your life, and see if you need to make some adjustments.

If  you want to change your life,   

you must change your priorities.

Good Character or Outstanding Talent?

Which Do You Choose?

Which are you best at, making progress or making excuses?  Making progress can be a small step, a small choice.  If  you want to lose weight, one small step to get started could be getting off the couch and walking for 20 minutes a day.  It will help.  Maybe you want to spend more time with your family.  Something like shutting off the TV and putting electronic devises aside for even half an hour, to spend intentional face to face time with them will begin to build quality relationships that makes lasting memories.  Each day, each activity we involve ourselves in is either something that benefits us to make progress in our life and relationships, or something that keeps us stuck in a life that we long to improve.  

I personally know that at times, it is easier to make excuses, than choosing to make progress.  However, when I decided to let the excuses go and start making steps towards change, I wondered why I had waited so long.  The rewards don't always come immediately, but each small step is a personal win because the excuses, and being stuck, have stopped, and progress, moving forward, has started.  The main thing is, don't quit!  Take those steps.  Make the choices, not excuses.


What will you do today to change your excuses into making progress in your life?  

Perseverance

Perseverance is to persist in anything you undertake; maintain a purpose despite difficulties, troubles, obstacles, or feeling discouraged.

Is perseverance something that is easy for you during difficult times and disappointments, or is it something you struggle to overcome, wanting to give up?  Do you get weighed down by fears?  What holds you back from pressing on to pursue your purpose in life?  

When you do push through difficulties or obstacles, what helps you to move on, and persevere? 

We live in a society that wants everything instantly, so persevering to achieve goals, move to the next level, or overcome setbacks or problems is something many give up on because they want immediate results.  Anything worth achieving, pursuing, and improving takes time and persistence.  It takes the will and the drive to not give up.  

We all will face setbacks, troubles, and difficulties.   The way we handle those things is the difference between success and failure, whether in a career, personal life, marriage, relationships, schooling.  The choice is yours on how you react, and what you do, or don't do, to make life better.  

Persevering is not easy.  It takes determination to continue on to achieve goals and dreams in life.  It takes the will to get back up and dust yourself off if you get knocked down, to keep taking steps forward, even if those steps are difficult ones.  Many times, you will feel like quitting or giving up right before a breakthrough.  Don't quit.  Don't give up.  Keep pursuing your goals, keep working to overcome your obstacles.  It will be worth the effort.