Christmas and New Years was good. Lot of my buddies came back home for vacation. Always fun to see friends you haven't seen in years. Too many get together parties to count. So much good food. I got to take off over two weeks of work. It's was nice to not have to worry about anything. Having a nice long break makes it hard to return back to the real life grind.
Resolutions throughout the year are important. But I guess even more so during the start of a new year. In a way, it feels like it's an opportunity to reset. Technically, we can choose to make a decision of change at any minute. The difficulty of making certain goals is that they are hard to measure and hard to stay committed to. Anyone can write a blog listing their goals, but few can actually maintain their resolve. Sometime goals aren't specific enough, sometimes they just aren't realistic, or there's a lack of consistency to keep up one's motivation and intention. 2019 had it's share of difficulties. At least next year I'll finally be able to see 20/20. lol. it's weird how we have to strive to be content in life, and yet also push ourselves to be better and happier. if we were fully content and happy in the present, then would we really need goals? my buddy told me, bruh i think u overthink all dis stuff.
i started using one word to encapsulate my general goal for the new year. I've used words like confidence, health, self-discipline, self-love, grace, community, flourishing, being with God and peace. to an extent i grew in those areas. But I definitely need to continue focusing on these in particular. It is possible to be too critical on yourself and that's no bueno either. But at the same time, I think it's important to keep pushing yourself to strive to become the best version of yourself. In a way, a new year is a reminder of all these goals that I need to keep focusing on. a lot of these goals are achieved by consistency. As I contemplate on these goals, I really think my word this year should be Consistency. This year instead of starting up some new goals, i think i'm jus gonna work on being more consistent with my pre-existing goals I made. it's easy to try really hard for a day or week. But to continually work on your goals day in and day out is where you'll really see growth, change, and transformation. Creating good habits take weeks or longer to truly develop. Exercise, nutrition, sleep, meditation, etc.
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In order to focus on a certain area of your life, it feels like other areas need to sacrifice. It's hard to do everything perfect. and really that shouldn't be the goal. this year i actually did pretty good with working out at least 2-3 times a week. I'm glad I had a gym buddy to go to the gym with that often. I honestly need to save more money. I spent a lot recently.
I've been trying to change my diet/ nutrition for quite some time now. I watched a documentary on Netflix called "Game Changers." Basically the point is how athletes and people in general are healthier becoming vegan and having a plant based diet. Although it just seems so hard to cut out meat. It's kinda hard to get everything mainly off vegetables. it just doesn't seem practical or somethin I would be able to maintain. I think it just makes me more conscious to stay away from certain meats. The quality of the meat makes a difference. There's so much processed foods i really gotta avoid. also tryin to keep sugars and carbs down to a minimum is also hard. Maintaining a healthy diet consistently will probably continue to be difficult for me. Here's some general goals i'm keeping in mind..
cut down on carbs and sugar
cut down on meats especially red meats
somehow try to increase a plant base diet
no processed foods
drink more water
exercise at least 2-3x a week
sleep earlier
Spiritually, tbh, it just really hasn't been there. but there's a few things i've been struggling with. like.. ok, spiritual disciplines are a great way to draw closer to God. But what happens when those things really don't work. Is it because maybe I'm trying to chase after some mystical feeling? But then i think, if God is all loving, and his love is so infinite and powerful, how come I don't feel it like the warmth of the sun. Shouldn't we be able to easily sense and feel God's love? my friend once put it like, well you know your parents love you a lot right? But that doesn't mean u always gotta feel it. Another thing ive been struggling with is that, we hear having a relationship with Jesus is very important. And I get the importance of what Jesus did on the cross. But a lot of how I see Jesus, is more of the historical Jesus in scripture. What exactly is my relationship with Jesus right now? like I guess I sense God the Father and the Holy Spirit more than the Trinity person, king, savior and messiah Jesus. John Piper once told me, when you sense one, you sense all. That makes sense. But at the same time, how can I specifically experience a relationship with Jesus, and not jus the Father and Holy Spirit. Idk if that makes sense. it's still somethin i ponder. And even if I don't have full understanding on these things, I know I shouldn't let that impede my faith or how I worship God. lol ok i really wasn't planning to blog bout this. Even though there are things I don't really understand, i'm glad that there are moments in my day where I can stop myself to intentionally be more present with God. Usually it means unplugging ourselves to not be occupied by anything else.. like entertainment screens.
So besides being consistent with my holistic health, I think this year I need to focus on being more ethical. There are times when it's tempting to take shortcuts and do things the easy way instead of the right way. So in short, i think this year I need to focus more on ethics and doing things right. hmmm.. so after like a day of thinking about this.. i remember one of my professors in school asking the question, "What word in the Bible means the highest standard of morality?" Some student answered, "Rightousness." You could probably group in the word "Holiness." I think those are also words I might substitute over ethical.
Right now, I am reminded to return to the basics of Christianity. Sometimes I am looking to grow more by looking to learn something new, or pursue sanctification in different ways. Instead, i think i need to develop a deeper faith. Continue to grow in the Basics of spiritual disciplines. There is so much that we already know and understand, and yet do not apply it to our daily lives. When I think about faith, we often see it as.. something you're trusting in blindly, with no reason or condition. But if you think about our faith.. we really trusted God because we saw all the evidence of God in our lives. Maybe we encountered God's love, or heard him speak to us in a certain way, or had a prayer answered. The Holy Spirit lives and dwells in God's people, and God's grace helps us to respond to God in ways we can't do on our own. So in a way, believing in God with Faith, really is an easy thing to do because we know he is faithful to his promises, and already demonstrated his love for us. Like if your dad constantly failed you in life, it'd be hard to trust his word. But if he has constantly proven that he is reliable and that he cares for us, it should be actually very easy to trust him with anything. hopefully that makes sense.
When we pursue our highest pleasure and joy, we pursue our relationship with God. God is our highest source of joy, intimacy and peace. So for our best interest, he is the one we should be running to, to satisfy our desires. Instead, we often settle for sinning and trying to find pleasure and happiness in other smaller things that ultimately do not satisfy. So in order to pursue holiness, we must keep our hearts and minds directed at being with God. God is not super far away from us. He is present with us at every moment whether we realize it our not. Sometimes we may feel blind, discontent, empty, discouraged and very confused. But again, God is always with us, full of his love, mercy and grace. And i think we can find a sense of peace knowing that no matter what comes our way, our God is with us.
Confidence
Health (exercise, eat and sleep better)
Discipline
Save money
Community
Resolved
Love
Peace
Grace
Ethical
Holiness
Faith
Meditation
Being with God
Consistency
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