Tag: Prayer

Foundations for Your Family

Family is not an important thing. It’s everything. Michael J. Fox

What is the foundation of a family? Have you thought about it? What about the foundation of your own family? The course of afamily is set by the man and woman over that family. We all like to say that family is the most important thing, but do we treat our family with the value that we say?

Father and son

When my wife and I were dating and through our engagement we talked about how we wanted to wanted to raise our family. We talked about traditions that we wanted to set. Also we discussed the things that we didn’t want to include as a part of our family.

Your family is like a house, it needs a strong foundation Click To Tweet

This was like us building a house from the ground up. Our marriage is the house and the things that we discussed are our blueprints for our house. I know that everyone may not have the opportunity to do this when they start their family, and that’s okay. Life goes through stages and through each stage we have to make sure that our foundation is set. Here are threeways, no matter what stage of life you’re in, to set the proper foundation.

  1. Assess what’s important

It should go without saying, but it’s too easy to drift through the stages of life. Think about it: what was important to you in your twenties is not necessarily what was important in your thirties, forties or fifties. Let’s switch it up; what was important when you were single, may not be as important after starting a family. And all those factors  change when your kids grow up and leave the house. If you want a good foundation for the stage that you’re in, then asses what’s important at your current stage. 

  1. A consistent prayer life

The foundation of every family should be a consistent prayer life. Not all of us are raised in church, even if we are: there comes a time where we have to take our relationship with God seriously.

That being said, a consistent prayer life will carry you through every phase of life. It’s essential for the stability that we need. I wrote more about our prayer lives here. 

  1. Values

Along with a consistent prayer life, our families should have a set of values that we live by. If you asked most people, they would tell you that they have a set of values that they live by, but if you press them to give examples they would tell you things that sound good. Not what they actually live by. For example, if you want to treat everyone as equals, then you have to model that to your family. It has to be established that everyone is treated fairly, even when it doesn’t benefit you. Values  aren’t assumed, but taught by example.

 

Discussion Question:

What phase of life are you in? What’s your foundation for this phase?

 

Leave your answer in the comments below.

 

Setting Goals with God

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Does God want you to set goals? Can we set goals and fulfill what God has for our lives? Are goal setting and following God opposed to each other? For most people these two aspects of our lives don’t come together. So what are we supposed to do?

Effect of Goals on my Life

This past year has been one of tremendous strides. I’ve accomplished things that I hadn’t even really thought about before. I’ve written more than a 100 articles for this very blog, lost weight and changed my eating habits for the better, and I’ve grown closer in my relationship with God.

I was never really a goal setting type of person before the last two years. I can truly say that I’ve only really taken goal setting seriously only within the last year. Just in this small time I can see the impact that this is having on my life.

Goals and God

How does all of this goal setting relate to my relationship with God? There are many times in our lives when God is giving us directions and things that we’re supposed to do. How are we supposed to accomplish the things that God directs us to do, through goal setting.

If you believe in your heart that God has given you an idea on starting a business or non-profit that will help to serve your community, how are you going to get this done? Most people think that God will give them the idea, the details, and the finished product. That’s just not how it happens. If it has happened for you, then you are the exception and not the rule.

If you look at people in the Bible, none of their journeys were easy where everything was put into their laps. From Abraham having to journey to a far land, to Joseph being sold into slavery and then his journey to the top official in Egypt and there was nothing remotely easy about Jesus’ journey.

Together Not Separate

The problem that we run into and seem to have stuck in our heads is that God doesn’t want to be a part of our goal setting. We try to keep these two areas separate, where we should be joining them together.

Our goals are not just meant for work or business aspirations, but they should be used to accomplish the plans that God set before us. Our relationship, faith, prayers, should all be used in our goals to accomplish God’s plan.

Going into this next year, do what I’m planning on doing. Spending time praying asking God for directions on what are the next steps that I need to take. Using my faith to accomplish those goals to do what God has set before me.

 

Discussion Question:

Have you set your goals for the new year yet?

 

5 Things to Add to Your Morning Routine

Netflix & What Would’ve Been

Has this ever happened to you?If you’re like me, you have a “free day” marked on your calendar and you expect  to do whatever you need or want. However, the great plans that you had disappeared when you sit down to catch up on your Netflix queue. Before you know it, you’ve watched an entire season of Luke Cage, it’s 6 o’clock and you still haven’t showered!

Time w/ God

I like to get the most out of my day. I feel like it is a good day when at night I can look back and feel like I accomplished something. It’s a good feeling to have days where you feel productive. Productivity has a way of making you feel better in every area of your life.

Start the Right Way

One of the most important things that I’ve learned over the last couple of years is how important your morning routine is to the start of a great day. You can pretty much Google“How to have a great morning,” and get plenty of advice on how to get the most out of your day. What I see from these tips and morning routines are the biblical principles that God has laid out for us. So what does God say about how we are to start our day.

  1. Plan the night before

The start to a great day actually begins the night before. Proverbs 21:5 Says that “the plans of the diligent leads to abundance”. A successful day actually begins the day before. Too many times we just let the day happen to us. We need to plan how we want our days to look in advance.

  1. Devotional

Having a good devotional is a  benefit. Most devotionals give a daily scripture, some reflection and a prayer at the end. I really like devotionals because they offer a focus for the day. It provides context and gives me a reference for what I can refer to throughout the day. Joshua 1:8 says it best. We are to “meditate on God’s word day and night.” Devotionals are great for this.

  1. Pray

By this point in the morning routine, there you should flow from one thing to the next. It can be easy to flow from the devotional time to a time of personal prayer. For me, I like to begin my personal time with expressing to God how thankful I am. Our prayer time should focus on God rather than ourselves. While there are times we do need to express issues of our lives to God, there should also be times where we are praying for our families, friends and communities.

  1. Journal

I am a big fan of writing in a journal. For me, it’s a great way to reflect on the previous day, and a way to transfer the thoughts in my head out on paper. Sitting down to journal after a time of prayer is a great way of getting in the habit of writing the things down that God tells us. Using a journal as part of your morning routine helps to value God’s voice and His word.

  1. Confessions/Affirmations

Ending the morning routine with confessions or affirmations is an awesome way to build up our confidence and self-esteem before  we step into the world. God’s word is most powerful when we speak it out of our mouths. We don’t just become the things we see and hear, we become what we say. Confessing God’s word over lives builds us up for so many things that we attack during the day.

Have you developed a morning routine? If not, what is holding you back? Let’s start today with getting the most out of our days.