My husband loves to say that you have to be a little bit crazy to sell your stuff and move to another country, and if you’re doing it because God told you to, then you’re definitely a bit off your rocker. We don’t mind being placed in that category. And we absolutely love the other crazy folk we’re privileged to know here in Nicaragua.

Along this road we’ve definitely made some decisions that looked more than a little crazy to others (perhaps even you?). As we finish up our second year abroad, I’m finding myself reflecting a bit on what brought us to where we are today. And what initially brought me to this point of reflection was a writing deadline. You see, last week I needed to turn in a few chapters for a WordPress course I’ve been hired to author. One portion of the first chapter discusses the importance of planning your web site before you begin development. The first step is:

1. Set site goals – To compete in such a vast online marketplace, it’s important to have clear goals from the start. For example, your site might strive to sell products, recruit employees, entertain, educate, or communicate with customers (or a combination of several of those). Keeping your primary goals in mind when developing the site is crucial, to avoid adding unnecessary content. If a part of your site doesn’t meet one of your site goals, it has the potential to confuse or even distract from the parts that do.

As I finished the chapter and reread what I’d written, I was struck by how similar that is to life in general. In fact, I could replace “site” with “life,” and well, see for yourself:

“If a part of your life doesn’t meet one of your life goals, it has the potential to confuse or even distract from the parts that do.”

Huh. And here I thought I was just writing about WordPress and web sites?

We have certain life goals for our family that help drive the decisions we make. When we act in such a way that doesn’t meet or further one of those goals, it usually distracts us from reaching for them. And when others view our decisions without knowing or understanding our life goals, our actions can seem confusing or misguided… even crazy.

In other words, you need to know the reasons behind our behaviors before they will make any sense.

So what are the “site goals” for our life? You got a few hours? 😉 Didn’t think so… here’s a great song from For King and Country that sums it up much more succinctly.

It all comes back to living and serving our King… as we prepare for an eternity with Him in Heaven. If I fix my eyes on anything else — anything else! — I all too often find myself becoming distracted and confused, which can lead to hopelessness, fear, worry, and depression. And that’s the opposite of what I’m after.

Father, I want to fix my eyes on you daily. Help me love like I’m not scared and give when it’s not fair. Thank you for showing me how to live life for another and to take time for a brother. Give me strength to fight for the weak ones and speak out for freedom. I pray I always find faith in the battle and stand tall but above it all, I want to fix my eyes on you.

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