Run With Horses

Do You Have Goals For Your Family?

Do You Have Goals For Your Family?
What are your goals for your family?What kind of family do you want to have?What are your family priorities? Do your spouse and children know them?What place does God have in your family? What place should He have?What will it take to be that family? What is your role?
For your children?What do you want for your children?Do you have spiritual goals for them?How are you preparing them for independence?What relationship do want to have with your children when they are adults? What will it take to get there?How are you passing your values on to your children? Hint: Be intentional!
For your marriage?What kind of marriage do you want to have? What changes do you need to make to be the person who you seen in that ideal relationship?How can you help your spouse be the person they were meant to be?Have you communicated any of this to your spouse? Why not?
For yourself?What kind of parent do you want to be?What kind of spouse?What will it take to be that person?

Are You Evaluating Yourself for Spiritual Growth?

Do A Self-Evaluation!
 
Evaluate your current life in each of the following six categories. From 1 to 10, how are you doing? Why did you give yourself that rating? What could you do to improve in this area? Write down one CLEAR ACTION that you can do this week to improve in this area.
Prayer, Bible Reading, Outreach, Discipleship of Believers, Time Management, Exercise, Personal Spiritual Growth
 
1) What are 2-3 areas where God is challenging me to grow spiritually?
 
2)What sins am I actively struggling with right now?
 
3)What am I studying/learning with the intent of applying it to my life?
 
4)If married, what am I doing to consistently help my spouse to grow spiritually? Kids?

Family Friday: thoughts from our journals

We have talked about journaling as a way to improve your consistency in reading the bible, today we share some of our journal entries with you.

Opportunities in Marriage

Opportunities in Marriage;
Spiritual growth-- difficult circumstances provide motivation for growth; points out need for it!-- Example to spouse, encourages them to grow, too.-- Provides chances to practice trusting God, obedience-- Points out spiritual truth every day. Not about me. God-centered relationship needed
Service-- Serve spouse-- Practice sacrificial giving, humility-- Considering others better than yourself-- Learn to take responsibility
Disciple making-- Practice discipling (spouse, children) before trying it out on other people-- Opportunity to live every day with someone else’s spiritual interest in mind
Support, Barnabus-- Sounding board-- Accountability-- Sharing lessons-- Serve together; not alone
Help in time of need-- Shares your burden-- Face challenges/trials together-- Someone who prays for you knowledgeably
 

Disciple Making Goals for 2023 - Do you have some?

Disciple Making Goals for 2023
 
Do you have a Paul, Barnabas and Timothy?
- Evaluate yourself, are you growing? What would help you grow this year? Are you ready to take on a challenge?
- Who do you know that might be willing to serve with you in ministry, committing to grow together?
- Are there people in your church family you could encourage and challenge in their spiritual walk this year? Who will you be discipling in 2023?
 
How do you identify someone to work with?
- F.A.T. - Faithful, Available and Teachable
- Who has time? Who is showing the motivation to learn and grow?
 
What are the tools and resources you need?
- Do you have topics identified to invest time in learning more about?
 
What do you do with someone you are discipling?
- Relational time together
- Prayer together
- Read the bible together
- Look for opportunities to serve together
 
Will you commit to looking for those around you who are spiritually minded and invest in them for the glory of God?
You will grow more than those you disciple!
 

Looking back over a year of Run With Horses

The Smith Family reflects over almost a year of Run With Horses!

New Years Resolutions for Your Marriage!

New Years Resolutions to Improve Your Marriage relationship
What? How do we normally view resolutions. How is this different?
What are changes you can make in the next year to improve things?Recognize an area that could use growth/change
Why?Ideas of growth need areas:1. communication2. personal spiritual growth – let this be a connection point; communicate about this. Dealing with anxiety, fear, weak areas Dealing with sin issues: anger, responding wrongly, bitterness, grudges3. invest in each other’s spiritual lives4. time together (quantity, quality)5. forgiveness
How to?  SMART goals S pecific M easurable A chievable R Relevant T imeframe
Specific examples. Clear goal you’re shooting for. Specific steps toward reaching the goal.
 
 

Excerpts from Our Books! Merry Christmas!

Christmas Traditions and What Really Matters

The Smith Family has a special round table to discuss Christmas traditions and why Christmas matters.

Owned by Our Possessions

Our Possessions Own Us!
We always ask kids at Christmas, “What do you want for Christmas?” We set them up from early on to desire stuff!
We let our stuff define us, weigh us down, hold us back, cause us stress, drive us insane, cause us worry, dissatisfy us (in a quest for more), and divide our attention from what’s really important in life. It’s deceptive!
What place does stuff have in our life?
What affects your view of possessions?-- Your family background (had money or not)-- Your friends-- Your financial situation
What place should it have?
Why do we have Stuff?
Why is it important?
Can’t serve God and money. -- Matthew 6:24Parable of man who tore down barns to build bigger ones, not knowing he would die that day.The life consists of more than what a man owns. -- Luke 12:15
Stuff causes fights – 1 Corinthians 6:1, 7 Why not rather suffer wrong? Be defrauded?Stuff causes greed and covetousnessStuff causes anxiety – someone might steal; I might lose it. Mt. 6:19-20Stuff steals our focus. Mt. 6:21 Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.We worry about a lack of stuff in the future. (What will we wear? Eat? Mt. 6:25ff)
Stewardship vs. priority
What’s the reason for having stuff?When is enough enough?Why do we compare our stuff with that of others?What drives us to buy more?Why do we let stuff become so important to us, when we can’t take any of it with us when we die?
It’s so easy to acquire more things; and it’s so difficult to get rid of things. It’s so easy to acquire bad habits/sins; and it’s so difficult to get rid of them and replace with good.
If possessions have a high place in your life, they compete with God for your highest priority. We make decisions based on protecting our things instead of honoring God.
How do we change?
ID right attitude towards things/ possessions. Heart’s desires. Must desire God first.
Give your stuff to God.
Find people who deal well with their stuff/money. Spend time learning from them.