The Best of Intentions.

I've always loved the idea of being intentional with every day. Life is short, after all, and I want to get the most out of it that I can. 
The problem is that for me, I tend to assume that in order to be intentional, I need to start the day with clear goals, and end the day by marking every single thing off of my colorfully curated to-do list. 
I have the best of intentions. I want to kill it at my job. I want to be a good wife, a good mom, a good writer. I want to be happy and healthy and fulfilled. Some days, that looks like waking up and working out, having time to put makeup on, easily getting Jack to sleep during the times I need to focus on work, and having time to write before making dinner and maybe even (gasp) doing the dishes. 
And then there are days where I drag myself out of bed, exhausted from being up so much the night before, and put my phone on mute so that the work call I'm listening in on can't tell that Jack is being super vocal about not wanting to take a nap. If I'm lucky, I'll get a messy blog post typed up while he spits up on me and my pajamas that I've yet to change out of, and I'll sit in a messy kitchen for ten minutes trying to decide what to do before finally just ordering pizza and begging Jack to sleep for more than 90 minutes at a time. 
Most days fall somewhere in-between those two scenarios. I think it's probably safe to say that's true for most of us. 
What I'm learning is that on any of those days, it's still completely possible to be intentional and succeed at those intentions. 
Being intentional doesn't always mean succeeding at every goal you have. Sometimes it plays out that way, sure, but most times, it's not about that. I think it's mostly about keeping your priorities in mind, and going about your day intending to hold those priorities true. A lot of times, that requires a big change in perspective. My change in perspective has been realizing this: If I get a blog post out, I'm a good blogger. If I feed my baby when he's hungry and hold him when he cries, I'm a good mom. And on and on. 
Sure, every day can't have such low expectations. Some days, you're absolutely going to kill it at every single thing you set your mind to. Some days, you're going to count getting dressed and not succumbing to a day of only watching Netflix as a victory. And on some days, it will be a victory. 
But on all of the days--the good ones, the embarrassingly bad ones, the in-between ones--you are amazing. 
How do you keep your days intentional when real life strikes?

Whatever you do.

"And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father."

Whatever you do. 

Whatever. 

I read Colossians 3:17 in the She Reads Truth thankfulness plan I'm going through right now, and those three words spoke volumes to me.

I wrote this blog a few weeks ago about how my life can feel pretty ordinary sometimes.  Right now, I don't have anything extravagant going on.  Anyone could do my job.  Nothing spectacular has happened with my writing career yet.  The biggest part of my day is spent typing numbers into a computer.  And honestly, that can make me feel really unimportant at times.

Whatever you do. 

I don't know about you, but I consider something done as a representative of Jesus extremely important.

Whatever you do. 

So if we're going to take this verse as truth, that means even the smallest, most minuscule tasks--they are important.  Not because of what they are, but because of how we are supposed to do them: as a representative of Jesus.

Anything and everything, including doing laundry and inputting numbers into a computer, is suddenly important.

That gives me passion for my day.  It gives me motivation to do the best that I can do in every area of my life because of who I'm doing it for.  And it definitely makes me feel important.

Happy Wednesday, friends.  Whatever you do today, do it well.




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Being Intentional.

HAPPY OCTOBER!

It is officially the start to my favorite three months EVER.  The most wonderful time of the year starts today, y'all.  I'm pretty happy about it.

The first day of a new month always holds so much potential and leaves me drawing up a to-do list and creating new goals.  Today is no different.  And while I'm drinking my coffee and journaling and trying to decide what I want to get out of this month, I can't help but think of past months where I've had such high expectations that I did not even come close to reaching.

And I can't help but think it was because I wasn't intentional.

It's easy to say I want to be a good wife, or a good blogger, or a good etsy-er. {Is there an official name for that yet??}  It's easy to say I want to read my Bible more or be outside more or make more time for whatever I need to make more time for.  But actually doing it is a completely different story.

Sometimes I feel like getting excited about life and making new goals and dreaming new dreams and writing them all down is enough.

But it's not.

It's easy to have dreams.

It's hard to follow them.

This October, I'm going to be intentional.

I'm going to be intentional about living my life.  I'm going to be intentional about following my dreams and goals.  I am going to wake up with a purpose and follow that purpose all throughout the day, so that the thirty-first of October looks a lot like the I hoped it would on the first of October.

So, what do you say?  Will you join me in living intentionally this month?  If so, the possibilities are endless.

Have a great first day of October, friends!

{Also:  The Handmade Fair is right around the corner!  I'll be posting the link Thursday at midnight--I'm so excited about it!}

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