Becoming Analise

Survival is not the goal, but neither is perfectionism; so what is the GOAL ?? Jumping right in…how it your time with the Lord? Today, what steps did you take to pursue a deeper relationship with God? How were you intentional with your time in order to know the Lord more intimately? Are you merely “surviving” in your time with God, or are you thriving? If you’re anything like me, having a meaningful and consistent daily time with the Lord can be very, very challenging. Here’s the “perfect storm” of my life when attempting to pursue my quiet time. -        I’m a perfectionist. If I am going to have a quiet time, I want to have a plan. I want to achieve all of the steps of the plan. I want to see progress. For example, if I begin a particular Bible reading plan, I am devastated when I get off track. I beat myself up, and if I’m too far behind, I’ll just quit. With my perfectionism, I have an intense fear of failure. This personality trait allows me to avoid trying new

Riley Grace, who will be five in three months, is my beautiful, spunky, creative, funny, inquisitive daughter, who at this point, still calls her daddy and mama her best friends! :-)   She never wants to leave the house without stockings. She despises bows, although she has about fifty of them hanging on a beautiful bow hanger in her room that is rarely used. Her creativity in drawing portraits of people astound me daily, as she tells me the tales of what’s going on in the lives of the people she’s creating. Her inquisitive spirit thrills and encourages me as we read Bible stories together and pray about the events of our day. Her dance skills and impromptu songs about random topics crack me up, as I see that she truly loves to make people laugh. She is truly a joy, and I am overwhelmed daily at the precious opportunity I have to be her mother, and also humbled and sobered at the incredible responsibility I have to exemplify Christ to her in every moment! I tell