Thursday, October 20, 2016

Update on the "Fall Into Freedom" workbook


Since October is half over, I felt it was high time to give an update on how I'm doing with the "Fall Into Freedom" planner that I posted about here: Three Words for Fall.  When I posted about my three words -- productive, restorative, and appreciative -- that was just the beginning of work that I needed to do in the planner.
Leaf line courtesy of my friend Vee
At this point I've made some good progress and thought I would share it.  The second page was "Before it Begins" and on it, we were to list things we hoped to accomplish before fall began.  These could be fun things like getting together with a friend, or tasks we hoped to get out of the way.  I listed 15 items.  Many of them were small things like making up a batch or two of homemade cleaners.  Of this list, I was able to cross off only four items.  Part of the reason being that I took a tumble down the cellar stairs in mid-September. Although I was not seriously hurt, my activities were curtailed a bit. I also spent two weekends at women's retreats and one long weekend on a getaway with my hubby, all in September.  I guess it's no surprise I only knocked out a few items on this list!

The third page was "Ask Him Where to Go" and had to do with asking God for direction for my fall season.  Just getting quiet and asking Him what He wants this fall to look like for me.  Here's what I wrote:

"I'm trying not to overthink this and decided a good way to begin was to again remind myself of God's purpose for my life: to bring honor and glory to Him by using the spiritual gifts and unique talents He has blessed and equipped me with.  Under this heading I have broken this purpose down into three areas:
1) Be a godly wife (homemaker, mother, daughter, etc.)
2) Use my spiritual gifts to point others to Him and encourage fellow believers
3) Use my unique, God-given talents for the above purposes.

"In meshing these purposes together with my three words and my "land" (as seen on the next page), I see some direction:

"I believe God would have me to do all I can to minister to my husband with good, nutritious food and the gift of a peaceful, orderly home, plus faithful prayer, this fall, as in all seasons.  This will require time and effort.
"I believe God would have me to continue to teach Sunday School, and to use my other spiritual gifts of helps, giving, serving, and hospitality.  We will be entering a season of pastoral candidates (and I know we are entering a season of holiday outreach) at church, so I will have many opportunities to use these gifts.
"I believe God would have me continue with my blogs to encourage other ladies -- I think He is using my Pinterest boards that way, too -- and to point others to Him.  I will be using food as a means of outreach, too (just brought fish chowder to an elderly aunt, and hope to bring baked goods to the staff at my dad's nursing home), so I trust God will use my cooking and baking talents to glorify Him.

The fourth page is "What's Your Land?" and the title comes from Genesis 13 where God tells Abraham to walk the length and breadth of the land He's given him.  We were encouraged to identify our "land" -- the lives and locations we touch.  Here's my list:
*My home
*My neighborhood
*My husband
*My dad and mother-in-law
*My grown children and grandchildren
*Extended family on my side and my husband's side
*My friends and church family
*My blog readers
*My women's Sunday School class

And then the fifth page of the workbook is "It's Time to Say No".  We know where we are called for this season, and now we are to identify things that we are not called to.  Here's my list (which may be added to):
*Looking at my tablet during my prayer time
*Making handmade Christmas gifts for all the grandkids
*Serving in nursery at church
*Stressing over what others think

The last page is "What Do You Expect?" and it involves speaking some hope and biblical truth into the coming season.  Here are my expectations:
*I expect that God will give me strength according to the needs/tasks of each day
*I expect that God will give me guidance and direction daily as I look to Him
*I expect that God will give me wisdom for dealing with my dad's concerns
*I expect that God will keep me safe as I travel about
*I expect that God will help me to use my time wisely
*I expect that God will work out the details of every situation I encounter
*I expect that God will give me the words to share His truth with others.

I found this planner extremely helpful and I hope that Jess might produce one for the winter season as well.  What about you?  Have you tried this workbook or a similar one to plan your fall?  How is it going?

10 comments:

  1. I have not tried such a workbook or journal...not nearly that organized. You what?! Fell down the cellar stairs? Omigosh. Sounds serious to me. Are you getting back to normal? About the leaf line...I was scrolling down slowly and saw it and thought "that's a cute leaf line." Never even recognized it as the one I made. Too funny. Thanks for the link love.

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    1. This is my first time to try a workbook like this; saw a link on someone's blog and decided to download it. It's been so helpful.

      Oh, not the entire flight of cellar stairs. Thankfully. Maybe the last four or five. I have no recollection of how many. Did bang my leg and elbows pretty hard, and my leg is still not completely healed, but it's much,much better than it was.

      That is so funny that you didn't recognize your own leaf line! I thought this was a perfect place to use it. Thank you for sharing it!

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  2. Saying NO is so hard for me but I am getting better at it. Lysa TerQuerst's book, The Best Yes, really opened my eyes in this area.

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    1. I'm getting better at saying no too, Arlene. Thanks for sharing what helped you!

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  3. I love your little notebook. The three things that popped out to me today is #1 that your little heartfelt writings do inspire, so keep it up. #2 I love what you said about homemaking with your husband in mind. I think I worked for so long that sometimes I have a real hard time realizing that I am so blessed now to be home and to be a true homemaker in the biggest sense. #3 I love the journal part about "What's Your Land" section. I am going to have to go back to that a few times to ponder more.
    Thanks for your post today.

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    1. Sandy, you are welcome! I'm so glad you found it helpful!

      Thanks for your encouragement to me in sharing what popped out to you today in this post. I appreciate your visit, your friendship, and your words so much!

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  4. What a great planner.. going far beyond dates and times, and dealing with your heart and allowing the Lord to prune and change our minds. Learning to say no is a hard one for all of us, I think. Putting our families first before other obligations can be hard. I'm sorry you had the tumble in September, but it does sound like you managed to enjoy the fall despite the tumble! Hugs to you today!

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    1. Thanks, Marilyn!

      Yes, this type of a planner is new to me, but I found it extremely helpful. I hope she produces another one for winter. If not, I may just go back and adapt these questions/exercises for my winter season.

      The tumble occurred just a few days before our lakeside getaway, but I was still able to enjoy the time (and get a lot of rest!) and was even able to do a bit of low-key hiking. God provided so wonderfully, as He always does!

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  5. This is a brilliant workbook for bringing one through a good thought process. Great find. And thank you for sharing your creativity to us, and your heart. Such an encouragement to me.

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    1. Mrs. Smith, I'm glad you found this helpful! It sure has been a blessing to me to help me think about things in a much more focused way.

      I am so happy to have been an encouragement to you .... and your comments here have been a huge encouragement to me! Just how God means for things to work!

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