Fearlessly Courageous
Desk of Dennis Piller
1 1 2024
Be Reckless in the New Year For Him! For His purposes.
Special Addition 2024
On Sept 10th of this past year, I survived a massive heart attack. I am not looking for sympathy but to exhort you to live as though this is the only year you will ever have.
This new year or tomorrow is promised to no one. Start living like that! Taking hold of God’s Grace and committing to living every day trying to enjoy Christ and all His daily blessings.
This week I want to spend some time preparing the New Year,…For You!
It has already begun. Stay tuned and commit to spending time praying over the things I share this week.
I know I never send out on New Year’s Day. But I hoped you could get a head start on your Goal setting. I am hoping you will get motivated to do a little thinking about YOU before the new year takes over. Please, sit down with your spouse or a close friend, and talk through this next step together.
It is YOUR life!
So, what does motivation have to do with Goal Setting? EVERYTHING! As fundament as this is… It is NOT easy. It is hard to put your thoughts down on paper. It’s easier to think of them because no one can judge them. If they cannot be seen, then we do not take the same care in thinking them through.
We ALL need accountability to do the right thing,
to hold to the right standards, and to help each other walk and talk the talk. God did not make man to walk alone or be isolated. Guard against that! Typically, a person does not drown alone. Let’s begin!
COMPLETING THE PAST YEAR / CREATING THE NEXT
You can do this exercise either by having a committed listener ask you each of the questions that they simply listen to and get your responses (they offer no judgments, advice, analysis, comments, etc.) or you can ask yourself the questions and write down your responses. I recommend the first way.
COMPLETING THE PAST YEAR:
For the past year, in the areas of: Serving God, health/fitness; personal growth & development; work (including financial matters); family; home; fun stuff; Using God’s gifts for God; community / personal relationships; personal financial & legal matters.
- What failures, disappointments, or broken promises do you have?
- What resentments do you have? (Resentments are anywhere you are making someone or something, other than yourself, wrong for what did or did not happen.) Are you willing to give up those resentments? If not, what else do you need to say to be complete with that?
- What regrets do you have? (Regrets are anywhere you are making yourself wrong for what you did or did not do.) Are you willing to give up those regrets? If not, what else do you need to say to be complete with that?
- What accomplishments or breakthroughs did you have?
- What did you learn or discover this past year?
- What would you like to be acknowledged for this past year?
- Who would you like to acknowledge and for what?
- Is there anything else you’d like to say to be complete with last year?
CREATING THE COMING YEAR:
I have a new tradition to introduce this year. Let’s tie off the old of this last year. Let’s begin by forgiving ourselves for our mistakes, errors, bad judgments, and even the absurdly stupid. Not because you feel like you deserve it because Jesus paid for them, and he deserves the glory of our obedience and his forgiveness. His price is so far beyond the speck of the sin we are trying to hold on to.
So let’s write a letter to ourselves about ourselves
and write of the great things God will do through you in this New Year~
A. Standing on the final day of the coming year 2024, create the context you lived this new year in honor of: (Examples of contexts: A year of Grace, Living an extraordinary life, How Blessed I Am, Making a difference, Being kind and loving, etc.)
B. As you write this letter, imagine standing on the final day of the coming year, speaking as a historian would speak about you… or sounding like someone giving your eulogy (in the third person).
He accomplished…. God empowered him to…. Etc) and create a list of specific measurable results and accomplishments that “were” produced in the areas of serving God, health/fitness/well-being; growth/development; work/career; family; home; fun stuff; using your gifts for God; community / personal relationships; personal financial & legal matters. Include what you learned and who you were “being.” In short, prophecy into your life what you would dream or believe your year would look like.
C. Identify the structures (e.g. actions in your calendar) you created to support the fulfillment of each of the specific measurable results. (If you are not creating structures to support the fulfillment of any of the specific measurable results, remove them from the list.)
D. Put in your calendar, at least monthly, to review and update this information.
This exercise takes Prayer, Serious Thought, and Time to complete. I pray you think your new year is worth the intentionality of this exercise. This is just the beginning… but will give you a head start on beginning the New Year without baggage and the weights that drag us down! (Heb 12:1)
I am praying for you to do this for yourself and your family.
Finish the last year and put it behind you in the right way.
And CREATE a great New Year and a New Life for yourself.
Don’t give up on me yet. The King will Come – Yet
