As the end of the month is drawing to a close, here are the results of the aforementioned July Goals. I am an optimist, and I like setting lofty goals even though sometimes they are not all completed. I am looking forward to August, and the fall colors on the trees, and autumn candles….so, this is what did & did not happened in July.
A few goals…
–Finish my Christian Theology class by July 26th It actually techinically finished yesterday, but regardless the Lord was gracious and it is complete!
-Write a 12-15 page paper defending complementarity and women’s ministry therein. Complete! I am thinking about posting it onto the blog, perhaps soon to come!
-Study and take three exams Complete! whew.
-Finish reading J.I Packer’s Knowing God I am shy a few chapters, but the book is mostly accomplished.
-Finish reading and journaling through C. S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity I would like to read this book again at a slower pace to really digest it- but it has been read, and I was able to journal through some thoughts, questions, disagreements, prayers regarding the content of the book. I recommend reading this!
–Write out doctrinal summaries of what I believe about: the doctrine of man, revelation, God, and why theology matters in the church. Complete! I have posted these for you to see!
–Finish reading Exodus in my quite times. Not completed, I have a difficult time keeping up with my quiet times while on holiday. We were away for 11 days and I wish I could say more about my devotional time during this trip. Any suggestions?
-Visit Megan in Prague Whoo hoo! What a fun time! See more about this trip here.
-Visit Shaun’s former roomate in Germany Also enjoyable! Pictures posted here.
-Go see Letters to Juliet and eat a romantic dinner with my husband on a date night. We transformed this into a lunch date. We went to a restaurant next to the beach and then enjoyed an afternoon showing of Letters to Juliet. We had also planned a dinner date tonight, but the little guy is sick. Perhaps next month!
-Write a postcard to encourage someone Check!
-Work with augustine on walking and talking Check! He learned to crawl this month, and is very close to walking and talking!
-Pray for Augustine through The Power of a Praying Parent with Shaun. I didn’t even pick up the book this month. I’ll have to try this goal again.
-Make a concerted effort to pray with Shaun every night. We made a concerted effort to pray together, but we did not do this every night. I wanted to start this habit as recommended by Noel Piper in her book, Treasuring God in our Traditions (a great book to read) shares that of the numerous couples they have counseled with marital problems; few, if any, prayed together on a regular basis. I affirm her wisdom as the times we have prayed together have been unifying for our marriage.
-Cook a new nutrious recipe Check. But the recipe bombed. oh well.
-Visit a castle and try a new cafe Check! Steve, a friend of Shaun’s, offered to babysit while augustine was napping. So we visited a tea shop whilst in Germany. We also we able to visit Prague Castle, an amazing experience.
-skype a friend from home and catch up on a conversation. I was able to skype Catherine, my sister from home as well as Sarah Niemann WHILE IN THE HOSPITAL and was able to see her sweet new baby boy. I feel like I had a number of hodge-podge conversations with friends, but none were a planned conversation where I alloted time to catch up with someone. I have one phone date today, so hopefully that will work out and complete the goal!
-Read “Raising Godly Tomatoes” and implement Godly wisdom in discipline. Sadly, did not start this book. I will definitely be plowing through it next month!
-Budget our finances by plugging them into google documents. Nope. didn’t happen either. I saved the receipts, but none of them are plugged in.
Well, there you have it! I love that God’s grace and mercies are new each day (and month) and that my worth is not based on how well I accomplish my goals (though it certainly helps in sanctification!) How did you do in accomplishing your July Goals? Looking forward to a fresh month to start new things.
Thanks for reading!