Setting Priorities

Once goals are made in marriage, it is important to make priorities to accomplish those goals. Otherwise less important things will consume the time necessary to accomplish the goals. One very important priority is to allocate quality time to spend with God.

SUMMARY

In this presentation we will look on how to set priorities to accomplish the life goals we have made (see previous presentation).

Tom and Alane mentioned in the previous presentation, three goals they made. Here they are together with some priorities they set to accomplish those goals:

1. Having a vital connection with God (which is essential in accomplishing our goals) – so they made a decision to take time in the morning to spend time with God. They began to study God’s word, rather than simply read it. They studied practical topics based on their needs (for example how to be a better spouse).

2. Have a happy home. This does not happen without effort. They decided to have regularity and order in their homes. They set regular time to eat, play, etc. This improved family life and success, reducing frustration and chaos. Another priority they set was to have a respectful atmosphere. Many times they have re-evaluated their priorities to see if they were meeting their goals by those priorities, making adjustments to meet the changes in their lives. To have a marriage heart to heart, it is necessary to spend time with each other. One thing they did was to buy and answering machine to eliminate disruptions while having time together. Another decision they made to have no TV, which they have never regretted. Thus they had more time for the family, etc (such as going together for a walk), improving relationships and increasing happiness. They were very busy dong good things, and realized that if they will not make some decisions about the good things, the best things will be crowded out. One of the best things that can be crowded out is to take real time to make a vital connection with God.

3. Parenting in agreement. It is important for the parents to impose the same rules, or give the same permissions, to the children, so that the children will not go to the mother if the father does not give them certain permissions, or vice versa. Rather the mother should say: “What did your father say?” and the father: “What did your mother say?” Tom and Alane began to study from God’s word in their quiet time, how to parent in agreement, which made a big difference in their experience.

Personal challenge: Make goals and set priorities to accomplish these goals.