Alert

Dictionary.com defines "Alert" as:
a⋅lert 
1. fully aware and attentive; wide-awake; keen: an alert mind.
2. swift; agile; nimble.

1 Corinthians 16:13 (New International Version)
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.

I know that I am not always as "wide awake" as I could be. I tend to be flaky, disorganized and stumbling through my day. The funny thing is, in my work life, I'm responsible for organizing a successful financial management practice. I have calendars and checklists and goal tracking sheets. But ask me when the last day of school is, or when Punky's next doctor appointment is and I'll have to dig through a pile of papers, check my email and wrack my brain for 6 days before I can give you an answer.

When it comes to my faith, I feel like every day I am waking up a little more. I learn more each day and I am striving to become a woman of courage, to be strong in my beliefs and the way I choose to live each day.

My challenge to myself is to become more alert in my personal life. Better organized, more "in the moment" with my girls and less distracted.

If you haven't seen the FlyLady's website- check her out. www.flylady.net She has great organizational tools for getting your house in shape as well as other areas of your life. I used to be an avid follower and when I was, my house looked much better and I felt better. So, back on the wagon I go!

Continuing Education

I just finished an 8 month long bible study at church and have been debating whether to get into another class or take a break for a while. In the back of our book is a list of character traits to work on on your own schedule and I think I'm going to concentrate on those for a while and not jump right into the time commitment of another class with school getting out soon.

So, today's trait is Accountable. The dictionary defines accountable as:
ac⋅count⋅a⋅ble   /əˈkaʊntəbəl/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [uh-koun-tuh-buhl] Show IPA
–adjective 1. subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable.
2. capable of being explained; explicable; explainable.

Matthew says:
Matthew 12:36 (New International Version)
But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.

Another verse:
Romans 14:12 (New International Version)
So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.

Accountability is something I think we all struggle with. We know what we need to do but are we holding ourselves accountable to actually do it? I can put the laundry off a little longer and watch TV. I can put off doing the errands my husband asked me to do so that I can have lunch with a friend. When we're not accountable to the responsibilities we have and the promises we make, we disappoint the people around us. And more importantly we dissapoint God who knows the great things we are capable of accomplishing. At the end of the day, if you had to report directly to God about how you spent your time, what you chose to do, and the things you said- would it make a difference in the way you went through your day?