Starting

Just like most of you out there, I have a ton of things I want to do. Starting a hobby, getting in better shape, whatever it is, we all want something more. And I don’t think this is a bad thing. It’s a natural human desire to want something more, to improve ourselves, to make things better for us and/or our family.

 

I just can’t seem to do these things. I’m always too tired, have too much to do, or am lacking funds. This really all boils down to my desire, though. I’m not willing to wake up early/stay up late, forego that meal out, or get off the couch to do these things.

 

All of my excuses end now. So that you all can keep me accountable, here is my list of things that I will do over the next month or so:

 

1.) I’ve been talking forever about writing a book. I will start that process by creating an outline for  it. It doesn’t matter if it’s any good, I just need to complete it.

2.) I would love to get to the point that I only drink beer that I brew. I will brew two batches of beer this month, and one of them will be a recipe of my own creation.

3.) I will learn how to podcast and record at least one.

4.) One of my goals is to run a bunch of races this year. It’s now over halfway through and I haven’t run any. I will go to the gym at least 5 times a week to work my way back up to race distance and get in shape.

5.) I have recently begun working with wood and I absolutely love it. I will build something large, like a box of some sort. I’ll work out the details.

 

These are my super short-term goals that will help me get back on track for my dreams. Habits are hard to start, but also hard to break. What are your goals?

 

Finding My Father-The Beginning

I’ve mentioned before that I’ve grown up without a father. I never even knew much about him. To be honest, I never was very curious. I never felt like I was missing out on much. I thought I was just fine without him. I was never really bitter, either. Just moving along with my life, and I never gave it a second thought until somebody asked me about it. Meeting him was never on my list of things to do. Then I had a few things happen that made me reconsider my thoughts…

Why Your New Years Resolutions Never Work

I don’t know about you, but I’m terrible at setting goals. I always seem to get ahead of myself and make them unrealistic. That is, until last year. I wrote a piece called “The Next 12” in which I outlined different ideas for goal-setting. I broke them down into categories like physical, financial, and dream goals. I made myself goals based on my own advice. I wrote them down, and encouraged my homegroup guys to do the same, and made sure to tell people around me so they could keep me accountable. The most important part was almost neglected, and that was bringing up the goals we set throughout the year to see how much progress we were making.

1 Year In

Today is my one year anniversary of writing this blog. I don’t even know what to say about that. Last August, after attending Jon Acuff’s Quitter Conference and hearing him and Bryan Allain speak, I decided I was going to do something that I had been dreaming about, but up until then had never had the courage. I was going to start writing.

Austin Lately

Some of you may be wondering why I haven’t written in a while. Of course, you may not be wondering that at all. But I’m gonna tell you anyways. Some exciting things have happened recently, and I’m so excited to see God’s hand working in the lives of my friends and Autumn and I.

Top 10-Bucket List

I think everyone has a list of things they would like to do before they die. Some people are adventurous, and want to skydive. I have no interest in that, and since this is my blog I am happy to call those people insane. Some want to climb a mountain, and I’m good with that one. Some people want to travel the world, which I would love to do. I have been listing things I want to do before I die for a few years now, and I have even gotten to accomplish some of them. I was actually able to pet a penguin a few years back at the Dallas World Aquarium, which was a dream come true, and I wasn’t even in Antarctica! I also camped with some friends in a public parking lot a few years ago, which, believe it or not, was on my list.

Father’s Day

Today is Father’s Day, as you may have heard, and this is always a rough time for me. (Warning: Things are about to get real personal here.)

The Very Worst Lesson

Growing up, I was told you could ask God for anything you wanted. I was told that God would hear your request, analyze it, and decide whether it would be in His best interest to grant it.

But I also learned that God has an express line. There was one request He would grant 100% of the time you asked it, and that is the exact reason you should never request this particular thing.  What is this scary thing? If you grew up in the church, you know what I’m talking about:

Focus

This past weekend I caught this clip on Saturday Night Live:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/319318/saturday-night-live-you-can-do-anything#s-p2-sr-i1

Fear

As I write this, I am crippled in fear.

I had some ideas as to what I wanted to write about, but I feel like I should write about Fear instead. Also, I forgot what all those other ideas were.