January Review

I committed to reporting out on the progress of 3 goals I've set for the year at the end of every month, and my time is up for January. Here's where I'm at:

Goal 1: Read 25 books this year.
I need to average two a month, and I finished three. I'm well on my way here. For anyone interested, the recent graphic novel of the book of Revelations is definitely worth your time.

Goal 2: Write 75 blog posts.
I need to write at least six a month. This is my eighth in January. My favorite for the month is my most recent post, "Draw, Antonio, Draw."

Goal 3: Write 25 letters.
I need two a month here, and I am writing #2 tonight. For whatever reason, this is the one I procrastinated on the most, though it might be what I see as the most fulfilling and most meaningful of the goals. Once again I see that what we most want to do is something we often don't "feel like" doing.

Goal Obstacle: Mindless television.
By my count I had somewhere between 5-6 hours of pointless television that could have better been spent in other ways. Not bad. Not great. I'd rather have those hours back, as I can't remember anything that I watched.

It's been a much more successful month that I had planned, as it's one of my busiest for basketball by far.  A lot of road trips and Saturday games filled the schedule, but having focused goals and targets for the moth really helped. Frankly, I'm please with my progress at this point.


A post just about my goals doesn't do much for the reader, I know, so I've decided that at the end of each month I'll include some links and quotes from the month that I found interesting. Below is what I have for January.

Quotes:

• "I didn't go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don't recommend Christianity." (C.S. Lewis)
• "It is difficult to see how Christianity can have a positive effect on society if it cannot transform its own homes." (John MacArthur)
• "It is a sad thing to be Christians at supper, heathens in our shops, and devils in our closets." (Stephen Charnock)
• "God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them." (John Piper)
• "If we let ourselves, we shall always be waiting for some distraction or other end before we can really get down to our work. The only people who achieve much are those who want knowledge so badly that they seek it while the conditions are still unfavorable. Favorable conditions never come." (C.S. Lewis)

Articles/Blogs:

• Dan and Me - This is by far one of the best I've read this month. A great description of an active Christian coming from an author who is a leading gay rights activist.
• The Apathy Shield
• No Better Critics - An interesting take on women in combat.
• How One Woman Created a Community. . .

I'd love to hear about your January in the comment box, whether that be your successes/progress towards goals, interesting reads you'd like to share, or comments about my writings from the month. Good luck in February.