MFM: Week 25, Day 5

Week 25, Day 5

Heart: The new year is upon us again, seems like it happens faster every year! I decided to forego ‘resolutions’ again this year for small monthly changes like last year. Each month, I make one small change in each of the following areas: financial, spiritual, and physical. I found that it was much easier for me to keep them for only a month and I felt less discouraged if one didn’t work out because I got a new start come the turn of the month! I did find, however, that I kept up some of the changes long-term. For instance, one vegetarian meal per week led to cutting out beef and pork from my diet completely. I feel so much better since making that change! Driving only one car for a month led to the realization that we didn’t really need both, so we sold one of them! This year, for January, our one small financial change is to increase the amount applied to the 401k. Not much I need to do in the way of making changes, but it does result in a slight change to the budget. Despite not necessarily being a difficult change, it seems like a wise one.

Soul: My spiritual change this month is spending 5 minutes with Jesus every day. A few years ago, I realized that I don’t bat an eyelash to give 10% of my money for God’s use, but I hoard my time like I own it. While 10% of my day might be a bit much to try all of a sudden (over an hour and a half), 5 minutes is entirely doable! Especially if I get up before the kids! One of the most wonderful feelings is getting to spend 5 minutes with Jesus, do a quick workout, take a shower, and have a few sips of coffee before the first “Mom!” rings through the house. It’s shocking how much more I love the pitter-pattering and shouting when I’ve had a solid start to the day!

Strength: Finally, my physical change for January is working out 10 times this month. Seems almost laughable when I write it down. My goal for this month, though, was to pick something totally achievable. I can certainly use the feeling of accomplishment to jump-start the rest of the year. So, I picked something entirely doable that, hopefully, sticks around much longer than just the month of January. So, here’s to a fabulous 2017 full of small, positive, and productive changes!