It seems crazy to me that we have already completed the first month of 2014! It seems as if time is simply flying by in my life right now.

Granted, we have a lot going on, and I long for some slower days. But I have resolved to make the most of each and every moment before it is gone, especially with my wife and kids, and in my ministry to the church.

The new year has brought a lot of busy activity with it. As a result, I’ve been a little slower with my writing. On top of my regular ministry duties and family life, I’ve added classes for my Master’s degree, and had some health issues come up in the lives of some family members. Along with that, I’ve created a store on Etsy, where I sell covers for my favorite notebooks, Field Notes Brand. As I have time, I’m creating covers for other sizes of notebooks and journals as well.

Like I said… It’s been busy.

In spite of all of that, I am still striving to improve my writing skills and my creativity. I have some great ideas for posts and series of posts that I hope to see happen in February and March. Stay tuned, because there will be some fun stuff coming soon!

In case you missed them, here are my top seven posts for the month of January:

1. The Difference Between Purpose, Vision, and Mission
2. 6 Characteristics Of A Good Communicator
3. Why You Need To Develop A Philosophy Of Ministry
4. 4 Strategies For Making A Daily Routine Stick
5. Trying A New Bible Reading System
6. How To Take Notes While Reading The Bible
7. 7 Steps To Defining A Purpose And Vision For Youth Ministry

I am pleasantly satisfied with the mix of old and new content represented in that list. There are a few posts from years past. But there are equally as many that are from the last few months as well. Looking at that, I can see that my effort at writing content that is current and relevant is paying off. My hope is to see the newer posts continuing to show up two or three years from now. I hop that these newer posts have the staying power that some of my older content has.

In the meantime, focusing on my spiritual health is a big part of my life right now. And, as I grow in establishing new and deepening other spiritual disciplines in my life, I plan on sharing how to do that here. I have a broad range of topics on the list for this ongoing series, called Establishing Spiritual Disciplines.

In fact, my favorite post from January is from that series. It’s called The Importance Of Reading The Bible. It was followed up the next day with Establishing The Discipline Of Bible Reading. In this series, my goal is not simply to talk about these disciplines, but examine ways to practically implement these into our daily lives.

Take a look at the list. Is there a discipline that I’ve missed? If so, let me know about it.

Have a great month!

If you are a blogger, leave a comment with your top post for the month. If you don’t blog, leave a comment with a favorite post or blog that you read this month.