How Does Advent Help with Goal Setting?

Liz Montigny shares how Advent can help us create God-led goals for the new year.

We’re already into the second week of Advent! Last year, my family became more intentional about honoring Advent and Christmas as two separate seasons. Advent is a time of reflection, preparation, and repentance and Christmas is a time of gift giving, feasting, and celebration. The four candles on our Advent wreath help us to focus our minds and hearts on Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. 

Because Advent naturally falls at the end of the calendar year, we not only reflect on ways we can prepare for and let Jesus into our hearts and homes, but we also ponder how far we’ve come in the past year and hope for what’s to come in the future. 

If you don’t already have a goal planning system in place, consider using the Advent season to create God-led goals for the new year. You can begin with these three simple steps:

Invest time in writing out your goals.

Resolutions never seem to last, and the word of the year is fun, but writing out your goals helps make it clear where you need to put your time and energy on a daily basis. Write out your goals the old-fashioned way, with a pen and paper. People who write down their goals are 42% more likely to reach them! Why not set yourself up for success right away with this simple task?

Ask yourself: are you sacrificing what you want most for what you want now?

We live in a world where we can order something today and have it on our doorstep tomorrow. Delayed gratification is hard, but consider that good things can keep us from great things. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. Taking time to stop and reflect on your present needs, what you’re hoping for, and how God can work on your behalf, opens us up even more to receive His gifts. 

You can lessen this temptation to grab that shiny object now by—wait for it—writing your goals down! Keep them in a prominent place where you review them daily or create a vision board. List the benefits of reaching your goal and write down what obstacles may come your way. Awareness is key and going back to that benefits list will help you overcome those obstacles when they arise.

Ask yourself: will this bring me closer to or further from the life I want to build?

Try this with your next decision, opportunity, or even when you’re trying to psych yourself up to fold that pile of laundry. This simple question will keep you focused and in alignment. You may not always like the answer, but happiness is temporary and joy lasts. 

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You still have plenty of time to consider how the Advent themes of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love can help you create God-led goals for the new year. #catholicmom

You still have plenty of time to consider how the Advent themes of Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love can help you create God-led goals for the new year.

Copyright 2022 Elizabeth Montigny
Images: Canva