Goals for 2020


     Welcome to 2020! Willie Nelson once said: “If I had known I’d live this long, I would have taken better care of myself!” I must agree with him.
     Along with changing calendars, trying to remember to use the new date on our checks, and trying to make some resolutions that sound quite serious, we have an almost unlimited amount of opportunities ahead of us in the New Year.
     Let me share some of my “goals.” I prefer that term to “resolution” because resolutions are easy to abandon whereas I have 365 days to reach my goals. I probably won’t; but until midnight 12/31/2020 I have a chance to meet them. Or most of them. At least some of them.
     Luke 2:52: “And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”
     I have used this as a guide for youth groups and a personal guide for a sabbatical. Here’s how I apply it to this new year.
     Wisdom: I will continue reading a lot of quality fiction. I didn’t do much of that (hardly any) during my ministry. Instead I read at least two books monthly that pertained directly with ministry. Now, I am catching up on fiction. Top authors are Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe series), Craig Johnson (Longmire series), James Patterson, Dean Koontz and Stephen King. I will get sidetracked from time to time, but this is where I will be concentrating.
     Stature: My goal is to continue to lose weight. I am heading down to my “ideal” weight. I will continue that goal until completed. Along with that, I have set a goal to do more walking. And, yes, wading in a river does count as walking!
     Favor with humanity: Not as easy as it sounds. I read a great prayer printed on a holder for silverware in Chuy’s. It read, in part, “ . . . and bless this food to our use and us to they service. And keep us mindful of the needy.” I think “mindful” means more than thinking about the needy. I also think it means more than writing a check. All of which I will continue to do. But I will be looking for creative ways to put my “mindfulness” into action.
     Favor with God: My goal is to put God first in every aspect of my life. I will fail from time to time; but a temporary failure is not the same as abandoning a goal. Our God is a loving and forgiving God. And God has not set me on this path alone. God will go with me and lift me up from the dust and encourage me along the way. Always has – always will.
     One last thought. I hope there are fish out there, hiding under brush and banks, whispering my name in fear! I’m coming for them with everything I have at my disposal.
     May your New Year be the best one yet.
     God bless us all,
     Doug

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

    “Theology of Work” Genesis 3:17 First Baptist Church – Holiday Island September 5, 2021   17  To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you;   through painful toil you will eat food from it   all the days of your life. 18  It will produce thorns and thistles for you,   and you will eat the plants of the field. 19  By the sweat of your brow   you will eat your food until you return to the ground,      since from it you were taken; for dust you are   and to dust you will return.”   INTRODUCTION : This weekend, we celebrate Labor Day.          A holiday set aside for recognizing and celebrating                  the work and contributions of laborers                           who built this great country,                                   and fuel our economy.   Down through the years,          it has evolved into a long we
Read more
  The Parable of the Weeds Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43 August 22, 2021 First Southern Baptist Church   24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. 27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’”   36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciple
Read more

Welcome!

This is Phase 1 of my new blog. The stated purpose of this blog is to share spiritual reflections that arise from fly fishing. Having just completed a two-year interim as pastor at Holiday Island Presbyterian Church, I have returned to retirement and the pursuit of fishing. Although I would never compare myself to the Apostle Peter, I remember a passage from  John 21:1-7a (NIV) Shortly after the death of Jesus, Peter returned to fishing.  "I t happened this way:   2  Simon Peter, Thomas  (also known as Didymus [ b ] ), Nathanael  from Cana in Galilee,  the sons of Zebedee,  and two other disciples were together.   3  “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.  4  Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.  5  He called out to them,   “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”  “No,” they answered. 6  He said,
Read more