Theme for 2014

Wow, now that it's well over two months into 2014, I need to finally jot down my thoughts for this new year! I don't want to get overly personal with it, but I just really loved having my goals accessible on my blog this past year. I really did revisit them throughout the year and checked myself on my progress. Soooo, I'd like to do that again, putting it in this blog space even though it's in a public setting. Maybe someday I will actually write in a personal journal?? I guess that needs to be a goal :). Someday, not today...

My personal theme for last year was Optimism, Intelligence, and Faith in the Lord. Looking back, I did pretty well overall. I grew a LOT. I don't feel like I mastered any of those by any means--I could easily carry the same thing over for years to come--but I made a lot of positive strides. My biggest specific accomplishment was reading 1776 and John Adams (by David McCullough) back to back. Holy moly intense books! I think John Adams took me about six months to finish. I had to keep checking it back in  and out of the library, but I DID it! And I loved it! I've had to compensate by reading some fluff books since then (hello Divergent series), but I do want to keep up with reading non fiction--particularly history books. We just live SO close to so much fascinating history! I wish I remembered more details from my US History classes!

Anyway, moving forward to this year. Part of the reason I've waited so long to write this post is because I have thought long and hard about what I want this year's theme to be. And not only have I thought about it, this time I have tried to sincerely pray and seek inspiration for what the Lord wants me to work on, not just what I think I should do. Maybe that's the hard way to do things :), because I've had a difficult time giving up my plan for myself and just going with His. (Writing that makes it sound so ridiculous--why am I so stubborn sometimes??) So consider this my act of total submission and commitment :).

Everything I felt I needed to work on this year tied in somehow with the new Mutual theme, which is:

"Come Unto Christ, and be perfected in Him; and deny yourselves of all ungodliness"

Moroni 10:32

 So that's it! I want to master the Savior's way of leading, fully live our stake's mission plan, do my part to accomplish our family's goals and the goals of our ward and stake, and all around be a better wife, mother, daughter, sister, neighbor, friend and missionary. I feel like I have so much I want and need to do, and I can't do any of it well without my Savior being at the very center of my life. It makes sense that as I'm focusing on this theme for my calling this year, I would also make it my focus for my own spiritual preparation and development. The Lord knows what we need better than we do :).

BUT, if I could squeeze in my own desires for my self improvement this year, I would say that I want to focus on this scripture theme through three specific areas:

Diligence

Work

and Self-Discipline

Diligence because I am so good at sprinting and not so much at long distance (figuratively, NOT literally!). I go full speed when I'm in a crunch and then just crash. I need to be diligent at doing what needs to be done every single day. I need more of an even pace in my life, specifically when it comes to things like menu planning and budgeting :).

Work because I feel like I waste a lot of time. I want to be more tired at the end of the day. That sounds kind of weird, but I want the good kind of tired--like I accomplished more than I thought I would, or I served someone who needed it, or I played hard with my child. I want Jaden to see that his mom works hard during the day and I want to involve him more in working with me. (Maybe patience is something that needs to go up here as well, then ;)).

Self-Discipline might go more along the lines with diligence. But you know, things like eat ONE cookie instead of four, be content with one episode at night instead of three (I only watch TV when Steve is out of town--I just never go to bed when he's gone!), put down the phone or computer and play more with my child when he's awake, etc. Basically just have the strength and determination to STOP doing the things I shouldn't be doing and just immediately START doing the things I should, when I should. Just take that darn natural man and stick it...to the... man...? Ha. You know what I mean.

Anyway, I know I have a lot of imperfections/weaknesses in those areas, so as I try to deny myself of all ungodliness this year, I'm thinking I want to start there. We do have specific family/couple/individual/calling goals we set in January, but I won't go into those here.

Other than one--I feel like I need to write this down for all to see so I hold myself accountable! This year we are stretching our temple attendance goal. We're going to go quarterly plus one extra time AND I am going to prepare and take ONE family name to the temple. Just one, but that thought scares me SO bad! I don't know anything about family history--just barely started figuring out indexing--and I'm really nervous about how far I may have to go back in my line to find people, but I am GOING to do it this year! I will find one person!!! I am so excited!!

Okay really, this is the end of this long-winded post, I promise. I just love having a focus and to sum it up I'm just hoping to be more Christlike at the end of the year than I was at the beginning. Here's to 2014! It's going to be a great one!