Step Five: Clarify Your Next Action Steps
KEY VERSE: We can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more. 2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT
I thought I needed to make intentional decisions about what I would do after my son left for college, said Susan, a business owner from Minnesota. Then it dawned on me: Why not make the most of these years . . . before he leaves?
How often have you said (aloud or silently), "When I finish school. . ." or "After I get married. . . or When the kids are all in school. . . “ or "As soon as I get that promotion. . ." or "When I pay off the bills. . ." or "If my spouse would just shape up. . . or When my children are on their own. . . then I'll get serious about following through on what God has gifted me to do. Yet, today is a gift from God, worth enjoying and living intentionally.
Clarifying your next intentional step need not involve making a major life change, although it may. It might simply mean taking a baby step within the context of your current circumstances.
Try the re-usable PPPPA method:
Pinpoint the intentional action you want to take, based on what God has been showing you.
Pray for wisdom and direction.
Picture your desired outcome.
Plan how you will accomplish your intention. What resources do you need?
Act. What will you do? When will you do it? Who will you tell?
Remember: you don't have to do it all just right right now.
Living intentionally is a lifetime process of getting to know your Creator and Savior better as He shows you more about who you are and what He has planned for you to do. (Eph. 2:10 again.) Processing life with the good, painful, and disappointing is an annoyingly slow procedure sometimes. It may take us to frightening places where we feel unfamiliar emotions, think uncomfortable thoughts, and face rejection or disapproval.
If God had sent His Son to accomplish His redemptive work during a weekend retreat, perhaps Jesus could have escaped much of the discomfort. Instead God chose for Jesus to arrive as a baby, become a teenager, and confront young adulthood. The faultless Son of God left perfection to face earth's reality: sickness, death, abuse, and unbelief.
Jesus thirty-three year journey here his road to the cross was long and difficult. Likewise, the intentional woman's journey to lasting positive change can be tiresome and perplexing. Yet, when we realize that God sanctions process, we can begin to relax and accept that progress takes time and involves detours.
Every day we live offers us a new yesterday of experience to incorporate into our maturing process. By taking one step at a time, we will have a lifetime of intentional living. And by daily committing all that we are (and know) to God's loving care, allowing His Spirit to guide, we will experience a lifetime of glorifying God which is the key reason for becoming an Intentional Woman. (2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT)
(Adapted from The Intentional Woman: A Guide to Experiencing the Power of Your Story by Joan C. Webb and Carol Travilla. Published by NavPress)
I thought I needed to make intentional decisions about what I would do after my son left for college, said Susan, a business owner from Minnesota. Then it dawned on me: Why not make the most of these years . . . before he leaves?
How often have you said (aloud or silently), "When I finish school. . ." or "After I get married. . . or When the kids are all in school. . . “ or "As soon as I get that promotion. . ." or "When I pay off the bills. . ." or "If my spouse would just shape up. . . or When my children are on their own. . . then I'll get serious about following through on what God has gifted me to do. Yet, today is a gift from God, worth enjoying and living intentionally.
Clarifying your next intentional step need not involve making a major life change, although it may. It might simply mean taking a baby step within the context of your current circumstances.
Try the re-usable PPPPA method:
Pinpoint the intentional action you want to take, based on what God has been showing you.
Pray for wisdom and direction.
Picture your desired outcome.
Plan how you will accomplish your intention. What resources do you need?
Act. What will you do? When will you do it? Who will you tell?
Remember: you don't have to do it all just right right now.
Living intentionally is a lifetime process of getting to know your Creator and Savior better as He shows you more about who you are and what He has planned for you to do. (Eph. 2:10 again.) Processing life with the good, painful, and disappointing is an annoyingly slow procedure sometimes. It may take us to frightening places where we feel unfamiliar emotions, think uncomfortable thoughts, and face rejection or disapproval.
If God had sent His Son to accomplish His redemptive work during a weekend retreat, perhaps Jesus could have escaped much of the discomfort. Instead God chose for Jesus to arrive as a baby, become a teenager, and confront young adulthood. The faultless Son of God left perfection to face earth's reality: sickness, death, abuse, and unbelief.
Jesus thirty-three year journey here his road to the cross was long and difficult. Likewise, the intentional woman's journey to lasting positive change can be tiresome and perplexing. Yet, when we realize that God sanctions process, we can begin to relax and accept that progress takes time and involves detours.
Every day we live offers us a new yesterday of experience to incorporate into our maturing process. By taking one step at a time, we will have a lifetime of intentional living. And by daily committing all that we are (and know) to God's loving care, allowing His Spirit to guide, we will experience a lifetime of glorifying God which is the key reason for becoming an Intentional Woman. (2 Corinthians 3:18 NLT)
(Adapted from The Intentional Woman: A Guide to Experiencing the Power of Your Story by Joan C. Webb and Carol Travilla. Published by NavPress)