What Do You Do When "IT" Gets In The Way of Your Goals

What Do You Do When "IT" Gets
In The Way of Your Goals

My husband and I signed up for an eight-week challenge. The goal was to create the habit of fitness while reeling in the nutrition to lose body fat percentage. The day we signed on the dotted line and had our initial body fat weigh in I asked my husband, “What’s your goal?” His answer, “To win.” “Me, too!” I replied. And that was it.

On Sunday, they announced the winners of the challenge. And guess what? We won! Marcus took the gold, and I got silver. I’m a goal getter. Always have been. It’s not expected or required. For me it’s intrinsic. But drive me with a competition in an eight-week challenge with my husband for accountability, and I’ll STRIVE for victory every time. It’s my great strength, but out of balance will knock me dead. There’s a key word in their…STRIVE. What I want to share with you is how to win, even when life gets in the way.

Winning this challenge was not without obstacle. Our circumstances were less than perfect. There were legit ‘excuses’ that could have derailed us. We traveled out of state two of the eight weeks. The rules required you work out four days a week. We were at the mercy of meals we didn’t prepare and to win we obviously needed to keep our nutrition tight. Our kids were still home on summer break, and a vacation mindset is not usually the one that creates strong shoulders and tight abs. But the goal to reach the goal is not just plow through and bulldoze everyone on the way to the top. I mean, I’ve done it like that before, and the sweet smell of victory actually stinks. For me, the goal was to create a sustainable habit that enabled me to optimize my health, that would help me show up better in this life for the purposes I am called to and the people I love.

This past weekend at church our pastor reminded me what a healthy human does to achieve their goals. It is not the hustle, not the grind and certainly not the strive. It is not to bulldoze or overwhelm or even make a bigger list. The path to creating the life you want is simply to REMAIN. 
“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.” John 15:4 NIV
It’s not all on you to do all that you do. 

Practically applying this way of living might require you unplug from a few things that are the “it” that get in the way of you remaining.  
• Unplug from people. Not forever, but for a minute. Practice solitude and have daily alone time.
• Unplug from your phone. You can do it. Turn it off or leave it in your car. I promise it’s going to be okay.
• Unplug from “busy.” We wear our task list like a badge of honor. Clear your calendar and leave a little white space once in a while.
• Unplug from the ways of this world. I’m not saying be uninformed. But shut off the news or your social media. Take a minute from the pursuit and gain some perspective.
 

So now that you are feeling like you drained everything that you thought was charging your battery but really “it” was keeping you from your goals…what do you plug into? How do you remain in the sources that put you on the path of your true purpose?

•Plug into scripture.

•Plug into gratitude.

•Plug into praise.

•Plug into processing with the Lord

The benefits you experience will far outweigh any challenge you ever cared to win. And the power you receive will propel you further than you believed you can go. When you plug into the source of Jesus, you will experience His physical presence in your life. You will hear His voice affirming and encouraging your daily decisions. You will receive His leadership and know exactly where to go. Your prayers will line up with the heart of His, and you will see more prayers fulfilled.

So when the next goal you have set to get and “it” gets in the way, reconsider the source you’re using to get you there and perhaps it’s time to unplug to plug right in. One of my greatest resources to offer you right now as you dare to dream, pursue your health, foster good families and live a life bigger than yourself, is to join me at my Significant Conference. It is here that we will soak in the presence of God. We will connect in a community of women who serve Him, and we will listen to the truth from His word to remind us of the source of our SIGNIFICANCE.