March Progress and April PowerSheets Goals

“In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.” – Margaret Atwood

Mission accomplished! I’ve been digging in the dirt for a few weeks now, preparing the soil and tracking a bit too much of it back into the house with me. I have been (literally!) cultivating. There’s something about preparation time that lights my soul on fire. The hard work and anticipation add up to hope. This is the season to plant seeds in faith, believing in what we can’t yet see!

(You might need an extra dose of that farmer’s faith to envision what will soon happen in the mess above! Ha!)

March was a big month in our family. 15 years ago, when Ari and I got married, the odds were stacked against us. In fact, they have been our entire marriage. But God… His grace is a real thing and it changes people. You’re looking at two of them below! We celebrated 15 years of the impossible being possible this month. From eloping in Las Vegas to a deployment to Iraq to our marriage falling apart to many dark years to an impossible prayer… and God slowly but clearly bringing us into the light and changing who we are—and continuing to change us. Raising an Ebenezer today. Thus far the Lord has helped us. Listen to our whole story in episode 1 of the Cultivate Your Life podcast.

March Monthly Goals:
—Celebrate 15 years of marriage! / We had our first date since the pandemic began and it was wildly refreshing. We went to an outdoor restaurant and had the most lovely conversation about our marriage and all God has done, and we just enjoyed being out together after such a long time!
—Start our seeds indoors / Done! We are trying lots of fun new things this year. It was time to switch things up—we’ve tripled our space (!) and are trying new tomato varieties we’ve never grown and new flowers. We’re joining with our neighbors to plant a huge garden in the empty lot across the street and are all excited!
—Get the garden prepared—soil + mulch
—Celebrate Passover / One of my favorite holidays!

March Weekly Goals:
—Shabbat
—Study yearly scriptures—I made my list of scriptures to focus on in my goals and have been studying them this month with this Greek / Hebrew keyword Bible.
—Homeschool with love
—Read Life Together with Ari – we did not do this in March. Moving this to April.

March Daily Goals:
—Bible reading
—Quiet time in the Word
—Write the Word – continuing through Psalm 119
—Run!
—Neck exercises

Onto April! Here’s what’s on my Tending List for the month ahead—all action steps from my 2021 goals.

April Monthly Goals:
— Plant the gardens – plural!
— Have a cup of tea – a nudge to slow down and enjoy a literal cup of tea, but also to savor this time in life with Ari and our kids
— Write to Him – use the gift of writing to connect with the Lord and glorify Him
— Open space for the Spirit – this is one of my yearly goals and a place I’ll focus this month as we move into a new season. Practically speaking, it means to create more margin than I am comfortable with to be able to listen to the Lord and follow His nudges.

April Weekly Goals:
— Shabbat
— Homeschool with connection
— Practice contemplative prayer. I downloaded a great app for this.

April Daily Goals:
— Pray
— Bible reading
— Quiet time in the Word
— Write the Word – with Grace! She is LOVING our new Write the Word for Kids | Adventure journal. And I’m so proud of her – this volume was her idea! She also helped our designer create it with her expert 9-year-old input 🙂 i.e. “More butterflies, please!”
— Run!
— Neck exercises

Your turn! What are you saying yes to and what are you saying no to in this new quarter? Share in the comments below. I love hearing your thoughts!