Intentions

...I believe in intention and I believe in work. I believe in waking up in the middle of the night and packing our bags and leaving our worst selves for our better ones.

Leslie Jamison, “The Empathy Exams”

The first nine steps gave us a structure for cleaning up the messes in our past. Step Ten gives us the opportunity to stay clear-eyed about our present day situation. In some ways, it is preventative medicine for living a reasonably happy and peaceful life. No matter how many steps we take, distress is not eliminated from our lives because life is inherently horrible and distressing at times. It does decrease our chances of more self-sabotage and the self-inflicted wounds we endure if we are not attending to and taking responsibility for our lives.

What do you need in order to live a more intentional life? I use a planner to help me stay intentional. It’s geeky but effective. I have a habit tracker I use to help me stay accountable. Each morning I do not have to get up and think, “What are my intentions today?” because I set my intentions for the month. I do look at my habit tracker and note the behaviors I chose to track that I chose to support my intentions for the month. I monitor, tweak, modify, reduce or expand my list as I learn more about myself and God. This is one way to work out intentions. What do you do?