4 Goals for my 30th Year!

Oh yeah, hey, last time I was here I was in my 20s and now....I'm 30! I spent the morning at home with my family and my dad (he brought me my first coffee), did a super fun photoshoot with my friend and her family (she brought me my second coffee!) and then my mom came over to watch the kids, so Eric and I could go out to dinner. We had the best dinner and then we came home and ate my favorite cake that my mom had brought over. Such a fun day!

I usually do goals at the beginning of each year, but since this is such a milestone birthday I thought I'd do them a little early. These are a few things that have been heavy on my heart. I'm so thankful for the protection and grace of God in my 20s and I'm so excited for my 30s. I'm believing that they will be full of peace and joy.

1. Read through the Bible in one year. I actually started this at the beginning of this month. I've heard that the more you read the Bible the more you enjoy and desire it and I've found this to be so true. I'm not using any special app or Bible, so I'm just alternating between one book from the Old Testament and then one from the New Testament. I've already read Genesis and Matthew and now I'm reading Exodus (which, surprisingly to me, I'm really enjoying. I had forgotten is was all about Moses). I would love for you to join me! (It doesn't matter when you start).

2. Be intentional in my relationships with my husband and children. I know it's been quiet over here for awhile and that's because I've been processing and mulling over a lot of things that both my husband and God have spoken to me. I've been feeling somber and melancholy, but I know this is necessary to grow and to become the wife and mother that God has called me to be. I've been convicted to be more intentional with my relationships. This comes much more naturally to me as a mother than as a wife. I am going to work on being respectful and encouraging in my words and tone to my husband and being the helper and encourager that God has called me to be.

3.Be excellent (not perfect!) in homemaking. This is another area that I've been slacking in, that goes along with working on my role as a wife. I know it's important to my husband to have a tidy home. He's never asked for perfection and the only "perfect standards" I've had I've put on myself (and those have held me back from striving for "excellence"). I've had a good excuse for slacking in my home for many years- lots of pregnancies and newborns, but it's time for me to make some major changes. I've implemented a (really basic) cleaning schedule and I'm working on keeping my home clean for Eric and not just when guests come.

4. Have a quiet and gentle spirit. I've been thinking a lot lately about having a "gentle and quiet spirit." I don't think this phrase or this verse is asking women to be silent, to not talk, to not be funny or outgoing. I think when I've read this I've been offended by it, because I knew that was never going to happen for me. Naturally, I'm talkative, I'm outgoing, I love to talk and laugh and joke. I'm not, "gentle and quiet."

I feel like I've gotten more understanding about this verse as I've studied it. One of the things I keep reading about is that a woman with a gentle and quiet spirit is not anxious and fearful. Something that I've struggled with for many years is fear and anxiety. I've been repeating to myself over and over the verse that says, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 4:4-7) I've been shocked by the amount of times that anxiety creeps up in me. It's several times a day, but I know that as I make a habit of focusing my attention on God that this fear and anxiety will dissipate.

Another thing I think this verse is saying is to talk less. I feel like sometimes the more I talk, the more I can convince someone (my husband!) of what I'm saying the more understood I'll feel and the better our relationship will be. Of course, sometimes talking more is better, but in my marriage saying less is usually better. I feel more productive when I'm doing something (talking), but being still and quiet is more profitable. It's not natural or easy for me, but it's something that I am working on.