2019 Goals Related to Fitness and Faith:
1) Get Back to Full Physical Health
I had medical issues at the end of 2018. Physical therapy and recovery takes quite a while. Praying God will continue to heal me. I'll consider it a full recovery when I can jog a mile a few months from now. In the past, my fitness level is about an 8 out of 10, so a fitness goal was easy. But this year, I literally have to begin to walk unassisted before I can run. Hopefully this can be an encouragement to you. If you can walk, you are ahead of me in fitness goals this year. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19)...it's currently under remodeling for me.
2) Get 7-8 Hours of Sleep a Night
On the devotional I was reading, the question to consider was: What would it look like for you to respect yourself in light of your God-given human limits?
My answer was to get 7-8 hours of sleep a night. The average American don't get this. I know it doesn't sound ground breaking, but here's my reasoning. First, I will have to trust God in the time he has given. 7-8 hours would already be allocated for. Second, I will have to be more accountable with my time. At church today, the message was related to rest. That is even more confirmation that I should include this. Restorative sleep is the lead domino to other fitness goals. With good sleep, one will have a clear mind, feel refreshed, and minimize food cravings.
3) Chronological Bible Read Thru
I would like to chronologically read through the Bible so I could develop a better mental map of the events. I think it's better to get through what I can and have a firm understanding of it, rather than speed through and finish. The Bible is like a spider web of events. In the Old Testament, patriarchs end up having a complicated family tree. In the New Testament, it seems like déjà vu as the events overlap in the Gospels. For starters I got a chronological Bible. But I have not found a solid chart or map of a timeline / genealogy. It is either too comprehensive, too big (several feet long), or too simple. If you have a go to chart or book with Bible events, I am open to recommendations =)
4) Spending Time in Silence with God
Psalm 46:10 (ESV)
“Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!”
Spend time in silence with God (Mark 1:35), just as Jesus did. As a start, a couple of minutes a day (literally 2-5 minutes), I will spend time in silence being in the presence of God. I've tried this several times, and it is harder than it looks. Writing out with pen and paper your thoughts to God also helps. Everyone has 2-5 minutes a day. If not, read below:
I don't subscribe to the idea of deleting social media. I think it's great when used in the right way. Here's a suggestion of the way I used to do it, which I'll start doing again this year:
1) Log out of social media as a default. It's not the 30 seconds of checking, it's what happens in the 30 minutes after you get sucked into the vortex.
2) Login to social media Mondays and Fridays any time from 5pm - 9pm (M&F: 5PM-9PM). At most, you will end up "missing out" on 3 days. Just imagine that you took a hiking trip over a long weekend and there's no signal.
3) If there's something that's a "must see" that you missed out on, someone will tell you about it, and you could check it on M&F: 5PM-9PM
4) If there's a picture and/or post worthy moment outside of the time range, go ahead and upload it and log out right after. Posting birthday pictures on the actual day is a lot more impactful and fun.
5) You still stay in the loop with friends and you can use some of those minutes in solitude with God.
Have a Blessed 2019!