Goals for 2011

Well, here we are in October of 2011 and I've only checked in on goals once this year!? Of course, I haven't done all that well, so I'm not wanting to update.

1. Get Healthy - I've lost a little weight, but nothing that is intentional. In fact, I've had some pretty crazy medical things going on the last six months. For the last three months I've been fighting a respiratory/sinus infection that keeps trying to move into pneumonia. I have had four, yes FOUR, rounds of antibiotics and it just isn't working. So, I am meeting with my doctor on Monday to talk about seeing a specialist. I can't handle not being able to breathe and running a constant low grade fever much longer. And, I can't handle many more days of this low blood pressure either. Hopefully, better health is coming soon.

2. Read Widely - I've read widely, but I haven't read nearly as much as I intended. I have finished 24 books and am in process with four. One of those is Les Miserables. It's 1200-1400 pages in print depending on which translation you get. I'm reading it on my Kindle app, so I'm 50% through it. I am also reading a book about the future of AIDS, a book about a man who grew up in East Texas during the days of the great depression and segregation, and a book about church transformation.

3. Finances - Well, I'm not as far along as I'd like, but I haven't done anything too outlandish. And, I've received some generous gifts from several house sitting gigs this year. I'm moving out on my own (well, that's a relative phrase) in the next several weeks, so this is becoming a more pressing issue to attend to.

4. Writing - This is very low on my Birkman score and true to that, I haven't written as much as I'd like. I know it is good for me. I need to talk through my ideas and fears and dreams. Writing is one way to "talk" but I prefer talking with my voice rather than a pen. I need to make this a priority.

5. Professional growth - I finished up my Licensed Minister's Training program in April. It was good, helpful to understand what it means to be Disciples. I have done some theological reading and some "fun" reading that I would count in this. And, I spent three months in a professional coaching relationship with True Course Ministries. That too was helpful.

6. Getting a Life - I have found some friends my own age in recent days. They starting coming to the church and we hit it off pretty quickly. We now spend some time during the week talking about life and faith and stuff. In fact, we are trying to meet all together at least once a month for fellowship.

Overall, this is still a work in progress. I'm not going to make some of the goals, but that's okay. It's having goals that move us forward further than no goals at all. I believe I will be able to say that I am better for having set them and at least checked in on them several times a year.

Shalom.