Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 3:18



Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Fifty in the Faith


Socrates said, “the unexamined life is not worth living.” On January 17, 2018, I will celebrate my fiftieth birthday as a believer. Hooray!!! While I think of the many blessings, I also wonder if my life exemplifies fifty years of growth in the faith.

I’m not into the hype the world puts in to New Year's Resolutions. But, every January, I do set personal and ministry goals for the year. This year for personal goals I plan to use Luke 2:52 as my guide. Luke chapter two chronicles twelve-year-old Jesus getting left at the temple. When he is found and the family journeys home, the chapter concludes with: “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”

Jesus grew mentally, physically, spiritually, and socially. When I set my personal goals, I divided a piece of paper into four blocks. I placed one growth area in each quarter of the page. My analysis included looking at my strengths and weaknesses in each growth area.

Then I placed a goal in each quarter that I want to work on this year. This paper is placed in my devotional materials and I check it routinely. Below are some possible goals. Notice each of these example goals are measurable so you can check how you are doing. 


                                            2018 Personal Growth Goals
                                                          Luke 2:52

          Mental                                                                Physical
          Read 12 books.                                                   Get to bed at 11 pm.
          Take knitting class.                                             Lose ½ pound each week.
                                                                                              
                                                                                              
                                                                                              
          Spiritual                                                              Social
                                                                                              
          Update prayer notebook.                                    Weekly lunch with a friend.
          Start verse memorization.                                   Monthly couples dinner.                                                                                                           

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