Brooks and I have always been goal keepers [notice I said goal keepers and not goal setters]. About the time we married, we wrote out our life goals. Family goals, starting & growing a profitable business, growing our own food, paying debt off, raising a large herd of livestock, goals regarding our quality of life, a trip to Wyoming, and few financial goals were among the many listed. 

By age 30, we realized that we had met nearly every single ambition with the exception of two – our desire for 3 to 5 children and a large parcel of land that fits our farming lifestyle and that our parents could retire on. One is out of our control (growing a family) and the other just takes time (acquiring land large enough to accommodate 100+ head of cattle).

How did we do that? How did we marry in our early twenties and accomplish nearly every goal for ourselves within a short period of time? Was our vision too small? Was is that we found the “secret” on how to meet goals?

I believe there are several reasons this happened. The two biggies are: first, the desires of our heart are in line with the Lord’s will and two, we figured out a little “secret”.

How We Attain Our Goals

1   Never underestimate the power of being in God’s will. It’s a fantastic place to be. I personally believe that we are given specific passions according to His purpose. It’s not by accident that the Lord made Brooks a farmer and a man of many sound effects – a talent he uses daily to lure the cattle, chickens, sheep and to distract a wayward child. Me a writer, foodie, lover of real estate, and organizer. The skill sets that we’ve been given have turned into passions and goals.

Every discovered passion that Brooks and I have found within ourselves and made into a goal has been realized. We’ve recognized it, planned it, and Lord willing have been established in it. 

2   Secondly, our secret to working out our goals is this… after writing out the vision we then write down the steps it will take to get there. You guys know my love of checklists. 

That’s the little tip that posts of this sort is missing. They have the ‘what’ but are missing the ‘how’. You can’t accomplish your goals without the ‘how’. It’s not enough to say “I want to save money”. You need to write down specifically HOW you will save money. As in SERIOUSLY specific.

Brooks and I admittedly have gotten off track a time or two and in those seasons we have pinpointed a crucial missing component – lack of steps to take. 

Where Do You Go From Here

As you obtain goals, especially the big kind such as owning a business, your prayers should become “Lord, how will you use this going forward?” Over the last several months, we have been on that path. Now that He’s established us, we’ve been praying about what the Lord’s will is for our remaining years here on earth and how He wants us to use our current position. It’s ambitious, I know. But, I believe He’s brought us to this juncture for a special reason.

It’s interesting to see what He’s been revealing to us. Every bit of it has to do with what He’s already instituted. But, never would I have imagined that these passions & goals would then migrate into this new season we find ourselves approaching. It’s awesome and it keeps me on my toes! 

We are definitely not living out the concept that walking with the Lord is easy breezy. Most of the time, we are hanging onto our hats as we wiz about in a convertible on a winding mountain road. In my case, I feel like the plane is taking off and I’m white knuckling the armrests. Hang on, girlfriend, hang on. 

So, no matter what stage you are in – no goals set, no passions discovered, or you’ve already been established – you have room for growth. Discover those passions, set those goals, write out the steps to get there, and pray, pray, PRAY!