Goals, Goals and more Goals

Goals are something that I have never really been great at. My personality is one of procrastination and I also like to talk myself out of things that I start. I think most women can relate to that negative talk we give ourselves. But one thing I've noticed as I get closer to God and as I get older, is that goals in our lives are extremely important and that the negative internal talk has got to go. Without goals, how are we possibly ever going to grow? And with a negative voice in our head, how are we possibly ever going to create and meet goals? God is our biggest and #1 supporter. With Him, anything is possible. That is the message that I've been trying to retrain my brain and heart to understand. And when I hear those negative voices creeping in, I'm more apt to recognize them now and understand that they are coming from an ungodly place. And do I want to be one who honors that other place and not allow myself to grow as God wants us all to do? I do not want the evil one to be sitting back anymore and saying "That a girl, Angie. I knew I could count on you." I really think if we allow ourselves to place some of the blame on someone else (the devil) besides ourselves and our weaknesses, we could allow ourselves to focus on a much more positive being in our lives...God. I'm not saying blame every wrong thing we do on that, but instead allowing ourselves to understand how evil works and recognizing that is a big step. For instance, I know now that when I start having thoughts of "I am not smart enough, no one really cares if I'm there or not, who am I do to something like that, they are so much better at it than I am", the list could go on and on...the devil feeds on that and then it just snowballs until you believe all these negative thoughts. But if I am able to recognize it and place that blame where it belongs, I can say that is not me causing those insecurities and it certainly isn't God...it must be from the devil. It just puts things more into perspective and allows me to push it away and continue on. Fear is my main reason for not allowing myself to set and meet goals in the past and I feel that fear slipping away somewhat and it's really nice.

Some goals that I've set lately:
**Raising $2200 for the 3Day in October - I'm up to $1835!
**Working out 5 times a week - I'm up to 3 already this week!
**Making sure the laundry doesn't pile up anymore (once I get caught up from my dryer breaking down) - Still working on...but I have a brand new washer and dryer that will help me do that! Thanks, Scotty!
**Being accountable to my good friend Michele and holding each other to our goals.
**Not allowing myself to drop out of my Interior Design class. The old me would probably drop out after 2 or 3 classes.

Ask me about any of these goals if you'd like. I don't mind sharing if I've succeeded or succumbed to defeat! :)

Until next time...