Seven incredible lessons for an amazing 2019

I often tell people that 2018 was the year I was stretched to the bone. There were several points when I was overwhelmed and felt things were getting too difficult. Thank God I was able to weather these storms. I believe that all through the year, God taught me critical lessons about obedience and relying on him for provision.

There were many moments when I had little and moments when I had a lot. On many of these occasions, Apostle Paul’s words in Philippians ‪4:12 came to mind. It says

“I know what it means to lack, and I know what it means to experience overwhelming abundance. For I am trained in the secret to overcoming all things, whether in fullness or in hunger.”

 More than ever before, I could totally relate with Paul’s story and was awed by his level contentment. I still have a lot of work to do but I thank God for every experience of lack and abundance.

I will focus on four areas for this annual review:

1. The things that went well,
2. Things that didn’t go well
3. The lessons learned; and
4. Plans for 2019

  

1. The things that went well in 2018

Here is a list of the things that went well in 2018.

1. Blog and Books

I wrote and published two books (though these were not the books I had initially considered or started writing at the beginning of 2018. I’m so happy with the books I ended up writing but know I still have to finish out the ones I had started.

I attended a writing workshop, took an online writing course and bought writing books. These were steps in the right direction though I haven’t practiced as much as I should have.

In the second half of 2018, I was selected as a guest contributor for Beloved Women’s devotional. This was such a blessing as I was approached to apply for one of the slots and was selected. It’s been a privilege writing for them and connecting with other amazing women.

One of the highlights of 2018 was finally starting a Christian women’s accountability program I had been thinking about for a long time. It’s called Hold Her Up Women (HHU) and we have a mandate to create a vibrant community of Christian women who love, inspire and support each other. To do this, we provide sessions and resources to equip women and help them achieve their God given potential while also holding up other women. The HHU resources center around building identity, knowing your purpose, overcoming comparison/competition, jealousy and envy. I will be providing more information about HHU on the blog and an opportunity for you to join our community.

 

Health and wellness

Generally, I was more conscious of my health in 2018. I drank more water, took little to no dairy and mostly kept to my daily count of 10,000 steps a day.

I also had my fair share of allergies in 2018. It was a wake up call for me regarding my eating habits. On several occasions, I felt the nudge from the Holy Spirit to eat better and healthier.

 

Other Life Goals 

In 2017, I tried to go on a mission trip but it fell through. At the beginning of 2018, I listed ‘go on a mission trip’ as one of my goals. One of the international mission agencies I contacted rejected my application because I was based in Nigeria so I didn’t know how it would happen but kept praying about it. God answered this prayer in a wonderful way, I was able to go on two mission trips and currently work with a Christian mission organisation.

Operation Konnect 

One of my major goals for 2018 was to connect deeply with my friends and family. This had me visiting family members and friends in different states. It was an incredible experience and something I need to do more often.

Volunteer engagement

Continued to volunteer with different organizations. Also taught a dance class to primary school students from April – June 2018

 

2. The things that didn’t go well in 2018

This is not an easy area to share but absolutely necessary. There were so many things I failed to achieve, things I planned to do in 2018 but was unable to accomplish. Some of these were a result of poor time management, fears (of success and failure), limiting beliefs, premature projects and the need to re-align with God’s plan for my life.

Here are a few of the things that didn’t work out:

Blog/ Books

At the beginning of 2018, I had planned to learn more about the book writing process: writing, editing and publishing. I did a bit on the first and nothing on the other two. I kept pushing this until it never happened.

I also failed to learn more about blogging and social media management neither did I connect with as many bloggers as I had hoped. I’m really not afraid of people, at least most of the time but this just didn’t happen.

I have been procrastinating on updating my site design and opt-ins for the blog. Hope to do more this year.

 

Life & Wellness 

In December 2017, I started Let’s meet Jesus Singles, a monthly intimate meet up for single Christian women in my city. We met a few times but not every month. I hope to remedy this in 2019.

I failed to read through the Old Testament but thankfully, I started a 52 week Bible reading plan on January 01, 2019 and it’s been great so far.

I had planned to sleep at least 8 hours a day but this didn’t work. My sleep pattern was all over the place. There were days I barely slept (four hours or less) and days I was out cold for nine hours.

I didn’t eat as many fruits and veggies as I’d hoped. The proverbial doctor wouldn’t be happy with me but I plan to remedy this in 2019. As I write this, I’m munching on a carrot. Go Bugs Bunny!!

3. Lessons learned from 2018

There is a lesson in every experience, and guidance we can take from our every day living. I hope you take time to read through these lessons as I believe there will be some helpful tips for you.

1. Re-evaluate my goal setting process.

I have learned that it’s not enough to create goals, I also need to consider my reasons for the goals, this includes my ‘why’ and the expected outcome from accomplishing each goal. Another thing to consider is how I intend to accomplish the goals, I found that scheduling a specific time to work on my goals helped.

 

2. Need to work on my time management

This year, I have been incorporating theme days and using simpler daily task lists with no more than 4 major items per day. This keeps me focused on the things that are important and urgent(well, for the most part).

 

3. Need to be flexible enough so I know when to hold on or go with the flow

As I mentioned above, I didn’t finish the books I had planned for 2018 but ended up publishing two new books. When my writing on the other books stalled(for various reasons which I hope to share someday), I was in a bit of a pickle. But as the months progressed, I realized I could still provide helpful material in shorter books rather waiting to finish the full length books. Thank God I did. You can get FREE copies of the books here. 

 

4. There is a time for everything and some projects may be premature 

This was certainly the case for my flagship course which I had planned for 2018. Towards the middle of the year, I realized that it wasn’t yet time for this resource (a course to help single women live with purpose and intention). I decided to continue writing blog posts in this area with a course and book to come in 2019 or 2020.

 

5. Don’t focus on the failures, focus on the lessons

Ah! This one is so true. There were many moments when I spent so much time beating myself up for not writing the books as planned. On one of those days, I spoke with a friend who reminded me that not finishing a book is not the end of the world and I will get back to it when I’m ready. This really helped and allowed me focus on other tasks that needed to be done.

 

6. Our mindsets can pull us back no matter how great our goals are.

Our thoughts are powerful and if we are not careful, our thoughts can take us down a path of fear, negativity, faithlessness and depression.

In 2018, I had to battle my thoughts, especially in the seasons when my bank account was almost empty, my readership was low and I felt like I was not creating anything of value. I had to remind myself of all that God had done and the things I had accomplished. I also meditated on several Bible verses, which helped get me out of my funk. I have shared one of the verses below:

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take captive of every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

2 Corinthians 10:5

 

7. Remain Expectant

In 2018, God opened doors of opportunities I hadn’t even considered. I started attending a new church and through this, I have met and connected with amazing men and women. The lesson for me is to remain expectant of all that God can and will do and be open to opportunities.

 

My plans for 2019

This review wouldn’t be complete without sharing some of my plans for 2019.

For one thing, I plan to double down on all the things that worked in 2018 and review/revise those that didn’t.

1. I plan to write shorter length books while I continue work on my full-length books. I will be sharing more details on these to keep me accountable. I would appreciate your prayers and support.

 

2. I hope to go on more mission trips (both in and out of country).

 

3. I plan to join a health and wellness community and learn more about my different areas of interest.

 

4. I plan to read more. Last year, I read over 26 books and this year, I plan to double that, God being my helper. Lol

 

5. I am also looking to create videos around my content and be more active on social media, particularly on Instagram and Facebook.

 

How about you? How was 2018 for you? Did you achieve most of the things you planned to do last year? Would love to hear what worked for you and what didn’t.

Don’t forget to get your copies of the Free books here.