Tag: 2025 goals

Progress Still Counts: When the Goal Teaches You More Than the Outcome

Progress Still Counts: When the Goal Teaches You More Than the Outcome

Last week, I wrote about a goal I met: working out consistently for over a year.

It felt good to reflect on that win…not because of aesthetics or numbers, but because it reminded me how much small habits, repeated over time, really do matter. Motivation came and went, but the habit stayed. The consistency carried me on days when I didn’t feel like showing up.

This week, I want to talk about a different kind of goal.
One I didn’t hit the way I planned.
And yet, I don’t consider it a failure.

The Goal I Didn’t “Finish”

At the beginning of the year, I set a goal to read my Bible daily using The Bible Recap reading plan.

As of today, I’m on day 148.

That number needs some context.

It doesn’t mean I’ve only read 148 days this year. On many days, I simply didn’t have the capacity to complete the full reading. Some days I read one chapter instead of several, which meant a single “day” in the plan stretched across multiple nights. And yes, there were days I didn’t read at all.

Even so, I’ve read 12 full books of the Old Testament this year.

That matters more than I think we often allow it to.

What Wasn’t Working

My plan was to read at bedtime — a quiet, reflective way to end the day. In theory, it sounded great. In reality, many nights I was exhausted and falling asleep mid-reading.

That doesn’t mean I lack discipline.
It means I need a better system.

Just like with physical fitness, when something isn’t working, the answer isn’t shame — it’s adjustment.

Reading at bedtime gave me feedback: this time of day isn’t setting me up for success.

The Old Testament Was Hard — And Holy

I’ll be honest: parts of the Old Testament were difficult to read.

  • The sacrifices.
  • The battles.
  • The violence.
  • The endless rules and laws.
  • The genealogies.
  • The censuses.

There were moments I felt overwhelmed, confused, and even resistant.

Slowly — chapter by chapter — something deeper emerged.

I saw a God who rescued His people out of slavery.
A God who parted the waters of the Red Sea and made a way where there was none. A God who wasn’t being restrictive with rules, but teaching a newly freed people how to live as a civilization after generations of bondage.

These laws weren’t cruelty — they were formation.

And the people? They were far from perfect.

Moses.
Abraham.
Isaac.
Jacob.
David.

They had moments of extraordinary faith — and moments of deep failure. They played small roles in a much bigger story. And somehow, God used them anyway.

I see myself in their stories.
Believing… and struggling.
Trusting… and doubting.

A prayer I often pray: “Lord, I believe and help me in my unbelief.”

Why This Still Counts as a Win

Here’s what I know for sure:

I have read my Bible more consistently this year than I ever have before.

If I hadn’t set this goal, I wouldn’t be on day 148. I wouldn’t have wrestled with Scripture. I wouldn’t have learned what time of day works best for me. I wouldn’t have encountered God in scripture the way I have.

This goal gave me progress.
It gave me insight.
It gave me feedback.

And that is not failure.

The Same Lesson, Two Different Goals

When I look at my workout goal and my Bible-reading goal side by side, I see the same truth:

Success isn’t about perfection.
It’s about continuation.

With fitness, I learned that habits carry me when motivation fades.
With Scripture, I’m learning that adjustment keeps me engaged instead of quitting.

Both are teaching me how to be honest and rooted in grace.

So no, I didn’t read my Bible perfectly this year.

Yet I read it more.
I learned more.
And I’m still going.

And sometimes, that’s exactly what success looks like.

How to Win with Your Money

Do you have a financial or money goal for 2025? Pay off a credit card? Save for a vacation? Save for a car? Save for a medical procedure? Something else? Do you wonder why your money disappears so quickly? Do you have more month than money? It’s disheartening to work so hard for our paychecks and feel like there’s never enough money. Did you know in the 1970’s people were exposed to 500-1,600 marketing ads per day? Today, the average is estimated between 6,000-10,000 marketing ads per day. We see more than 12x more ads each day than we did 50 years ago. 🤯 That’s one indicator of why we can’t keep our money for very long and why we lose track of it. The reality is every ad you see is vying for your hard-earned dollar. Marketers are smart and they want to separate you from your money. They know how to play into your emotions and how to make you think and feel like you can’t live without a product or service. Not to mention all the data our phones collect about what we click on, how many seconds we watch or stop scrolling to see an ad. With this data, marketers can put even more pinpointed products and services in front of you in the form of ads. What do we do about it?

    1. Game Plan and Defensive Strategy

        When you play a game, the goal is to win. Think of this as money goals = winning. Next, to win, you need a solid defense strategy. In its basic meaning, defense means having a defender for every gap. Where are your money gaps? How do you know what they are? Once you know, you can enable your defenders.

        2. Money Plan vs Actual Spending

        The best tool to identify where your money gaps are is going to be…wait for it…a budget. Yes, I know! The horrible “B” word. 😉 If it feels better for you, refer to it as your money plan instead! You’re going to take a little time, set out a money plan for the month and then track what you actually spend. Then compare what your plan was versus your actual spending. This exercise will identify your gaps. Where are you overspending? Do you have enough income to cover your basics expenses?

        3. Mind your Gaps

        Once you know where you are overspending, then you can enable your defenders. Are you shopping too much? Defense: consider deleting your shopping apps or unsubscribing to email lists. Take away the temptation. Are you spending a lot of money on fast food? Defense: consider making sandwiches at home to take for lunch. Are you finding that you aren’t able to cover your basic expenses: housing, food, clothes, transportation? Defense: What are ways you could make more money either by side hustle or finding a job that will pay more?

        It’s great to have money goals. That’s step one, establish your goal because that’s how you’ll know if you are winning. Money goal = winning. How are you going to move forward toward accomplishing your money goal? Define your game plan, identify your gaps and enable your defenders to fill in the gaps. You’ve worked hard for your money and you should keep it or at least tell it where to go instead of wondering where it went.

        New Year Perspective

        Happy New Year! A clean slate, a turning of the page, a new chapter, a new book. For some, 2024 may have been unusually difficult and you might be looking forward to the start of a new year. For me, I’m always a little concerned when midnight strikes on December 31. I’m worried about the unknowns and what hardships are in store. Will there be happiness, sadness, excitement? What losses might I experience? My logical brain knows that all of these will be true. My heart, on the other hand, is worried about the possibilities that will be hard and disappointing.

        The truth is every year has challenges, losses, excitement, fun, sadness, happiness, and every other shade of emotion. In God’s wisdom, He did not give us a crystal ball to know what’s coming, instead time unfolds one day unto the next. Deuteronomy 31:8 says “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” It’s a comforting reminder that He walks with us daily. We will walk through hardships one step at a time much like any challenge we’ve already walked through, and we are never alone.

        As we begin 2025 with goals, aspirations, or have hope of what this year will bring, I want to share a story I heard many years ago. It’s a story that stepped on my toes and caused me to reflect on the differences of what I’m looking for, what I may find, and the disconnect between the two.

        Here’s the story: A farmer was tending his crops and a man came walking along the road. The man stopped and asked the farmer, “What kind of people are in the next town?” The farmer replied, “what kind of people were in the town that you came from?”

        The man replied, “they were nice and kind people.” The farmer said, “you will find the same type of people in the next town.” And the man departed on his way.

        Some time passed and the same farmer was tending his crops and another man was walking along the road and approached the farmer. He told the farmer he was travelling into the next town and he asked, “what kind of people reside there?”

        The farmer asked, “what kind of people were in the town that you came from?”

        The man replied, “oh, the people in the previous town were unkind, unfair, and judgmental which is why I left.” The farmer stated, “you will find the same type of people in the next town.”

        What does this story illustrate? If you’ve experienced similar challenges and frustrations year after year, it might be an opportunity to reflect on what you are looking for and expecting to find. If you are anticipating hardship in 2025, you will find it. If you are suspecting that 2025 will be challenging, you will find it. Scientifically, our brains are wired to look for the evidence of what we believe. What do you honestly believe about this new year at your core?

        What I know to be true is that I cannot bring the same thought processes and habits if I want something different. I can’t expect to grow friendships if I don’t plan and invest time into those relationships. I can’t expect to become healthier if I don’t plan how and when I’m going to be physically active and eat healthful foods. I’m setting myself up for frustration if nothing changes. It’s, then, easy to assume that it must be the outside world that’s not working. If I take a few steps back and zoom out, I can see the common denominator in frustrations that have seemly repeated in my life is me. If I want change, I need to shift my approach.

        If you are frustrated that 2024 didn’t go so well, take a look at the things that you might be able to change in 2025, like your attitude and what do you honestly believe. What are you expecting to find in 2025? If it’s negative, then it might be time to reflect on how you can shift to more positive expectations. If you have goals you want to accomplish, make sure you aren’t standing in your own way to complete them. You, ultimately, hold the answers. Start with being honest with yourself and decide if it might be time to make a shift.

        You can positively affect the direction of your 2025. You can accomplish your goals with the right mindset. Are you ready to crush 2025 and have an awesome year? Ready, set…let’s GO!