An acrostic to help me remember six goals for a life on purpose
Last week I promised to share an acrostic I’m using to plan and evaluate my days.
Before I do that, I must state a couple disclaimers:
First, these are goals. I’m on a journey here, stretching toward becoming the person I want to be. I certainly have not arrived.
Second, I would never try to accomplish all of these in equal measure every day. But I can look at them as a week passes by to see how well I’ve achieved any of them at all.
Third, this is my story. I’m not proposing any reader will use this list for himself.
As I anticipated living alone for the first time in my life, I knew it would be easy to fritter away the years still before me. So came up with an acrostic that helps me discover the blessed sense of satisfaction that comes to anyone who knows he has been productive.
And this list prods me to get after responsibilities or opportunities it would be easy to forget. Or put off. It’s easy to sleep in instead of taking some time to read the Bible. It’s easy to tell myself, “Next week I’ll get to that crammed closet or that pile in the corner or that drawer overflowing with I-don’t-know what.” And it’s easy for “next week” never to come.
I may look back on this a year from now and shake my head at how inadequate such a list was. Or some readers may suggest more effective strategies for keeping themselves on track. All comments are welcome. Whatever happens, I’ll report here.
And this week I’ll boldly tell you my plan while admitting it may not work for me long-term. This is my acrostic:
G
E x 2
M
S x 2
G stands for God.
My personal devotional life has sometimes been disjointed, but I’ve never given up trying to make time for Bible reading and prayer. My attitude toward this effort is maturing. I no longer feel as if “daily devotions” is a duty that keeps me right with God.
The goal is not rule-keeping but relationship, and when I allow myself to hear what he’s saying and thank him for what he’s doing, my life is more centered.
E stands for Exercise and Evelyn.
Through the years my exercise regimen has been inconsistent, too. Covid stopped us from going to the gym. And soon after that, when Evelyn started wandering, I couldn’t leave her at the house alone to walk in the neighborhood.
Earlier this year, I did begin walking again, often at a local mall, while a caregiver was here. Now that I have no excuses, I’m trying to do better.
I’m visiting Evelyn one or two or three hours every day I’m in town. I’m particularly blessed that she has never complained when it’s time for me to leave and never asked when she could go home.
Generally, I feel like her time with me there is about the same as when I’m away: I sit beside her while she reads aloud. I help her practice with her walker in the hallways. I accompany her to activities or sit with her at mealtime. And I almost always get a pretty smile from her.
I enjoy this some times more than others, but it’s never difficult. I’m working to build good relationships with staff members as I monitor her care, and generally I think it’s going pretty well.
M stands for me.
I’ll confess I seldom miss my “me-time.” I eat what I want when I want, watch a show Evelyn wouldn’t have sat through, enjoy a meal or outing with friends, linger at the plant nursery, or take my time at the grocery store.
“Me-time” this week included a wonderful outing with two fine friends to celebrate my birthday Saturday. We began the day with a happy visit with Evelyn.
A couple of weeks ago I visited my son and his family at their home in New York, and this week I’m spending several days with 50-year friends who live southwest of Atlanta. I hadn’t traveled for 17 months, and it has been great to get away.
S stands for service and stuff.
I do a little volunteering, and I’m planning to do more. I view most of my writing as an effort to serve others. And I try to bring a listening ear and word of encouragement to most everyone I encounter.
Meanwhile, there’s always stuff to do around the house. After weekly housekeeping comes a long list of projects—sorting, pitching, organizing—that I’ve been putting off because I said I didn’t have time. It would be easy to keep saying that if I didn’t have this goal on my list.
Often I accomplish more than one goal with just one activity.
I enjoy the writing, for example, and some of it involves Bible study; that puts service, me-time, and God-time together in one pursuit. Visiting Evelyn is service. Working in the garden is stuff, but I enjoy the result, so I’ll call it me-time, too, not to mention exercise. Inviting others for dinner combines service with me-time; it’s as good for me as it might be for them.
Generally, all this is happening naturally. I’m not at all compulsive about it. The list is simply a way to evaluate whether I’m living haphazardly or on purpose.
My main focus for the last several years has been serving and surviving with Evelyn. Now I have time to add more, and I don’t want to waste it.