The Perfect Woman

Since my last post was on the Perfect Man (for me), this one will need to be on the Perfect Woman, whom I will endeavor to become in order to attract the Perfect Man.  Or something like that.  This is actually more along the lines of my resolutions for 2011, but if I achieve all of them, then maybe Mr. Perfect will indeed notice me. 

First and foremost, I resolve to continue to grow in my walk with God.  Of the four dimensions (heart, soul, mind and strength), I need the most work on heart and strength. 

I need to learn to submit my emotions to God and allow Him to use them for His glory.  Since pity parties are not really all that fun anyhow, this year my goal is to learn how to deal with the loneliness of being unmarried in a constructive way.

As for loving God with all my strength, this year I will take better care of myself physically.  I have two plans to do this.  First, I will exercise more self-discipline when it comes to my food choices.  And second, I will join the YMCA and begin walking.  Oh, and I will make every attempt not to refer to the room that contains all the workout machines as "The Torture Chamber," just in case I get to the point where I am able to enter said room without being intimidated by all the Barbie dolls there and learn how to use some of the torture devices...uhm, I mean some of the fitness equipment.

As I am walking or otherwise exercising, I will pray.  But I also would like to begin a prayer journal, so I can be more systematic about praying.  Praying for my friends in alphabetical order works, but once I move beyond my inner circle, I tend to be too haphazard about my prayer life.

Praying for my children will also be more deliberate.  I plan to work my way through the little book Watchmen on the Walls, by Anne Arkins & Gary Harrell, in order to pray character into my children. 

And speaking of children, this year we as a family are going to embark on reading through the Old Testament in our personal devotions,  and I endeavor to make it a topic of daily discussion, so that we can spur one another on in our Christian faith.

Finally, my goal for 2011 is to make our home a hospitable place where our friends are always welcome.  This means I will need to do some serious decluttering, although that process is already underway, and keep up with the housework in a more disciplined fashion than I have in the past.  I may also need to learn to bake cookies.  :-)

So there you have it:  my aspirations for myself are at least as daunting as those for my Perfect Man.  Can I do this?  Well, not on my own.  But with Christ in me, all things are possible, so I will set my eyes on Him and move boldly foreward into 2011!