Prioritizing Goals and Godly Assignments

By Casey Cassady

At the age of 33, I can be honest with myself by saying that I am not the most accomplished person. I feel as though things have often either come easy for me or have been challenging to the point of me choosing to give up. I have also had to intentionally develop in the area of indecisiveness and learn how to make decisions that reflected my worth, goals, and God’s plans for me. With growth and gratitude, I can say that over the last few years alone, I have:

• Written, published, and released a book
• Obtained my master’s degree with highest honors (while pregnant and then with a newborn)
• Experienced my first year of motherhood
• Paid off about 10 thousand dollars of debt while accumulating a solid savings account
• Worked with a videographer to release several videos that showcase my poetry
• …and so much more.

I do not say this to brag or advertise my content, but rather to help explain that I have learned so much of what it means to set and accomplish goals. As we enter a new year, it is time to set some goals! With the hopes of encouraging you, I want to share with you what I have learned along the way and the beliefs that have tremendously helped me be able to accomplish what I have accomplished more recently in life.

Before diving in, I must give credit to the wisdom of God that has led me, as well as many people who God has placed on my path. Some have taught me about my calling and how to chase after what God has for me.  Others have been, and are, a part of what I am doing in my life now. I am grateful to have had such wise and experienced mentors, friends, and fellow creatives around me.

First and foremost, I want to say that it is important to have goals. There will never be an end to what we are capable of when we are empowered by the Holy Spirit (reference Philippians 4:13). Therefore, if you find yourself waking up to the same routine day in and day out, I encourage you to challenge yourself. Ask yourself these questions:

1. What is next for my life?
2. What has God put on my heart to do that I have not yet done?
3. Where do I see myself in 1, 5, and 10 years from now?
4. What areas of myself can I be intentional in developing in?
5. Am I aware of the calling God has on my life, and do I know what I need to do to pursue it?

I have learned that setting and reaching goals requires us to view a goal as a responsibility. Many of the things we desire to accomplish are put onto our hearts by God. Therefore, if God is calling us to do something, our mindset should desire and be willing to prioritize it. When God gives us an assignment, it should not just be something we have on a bucket list, with a mindset of “I will get to that some day before I die”. There is a reason for everything God puts on our hearts to do, so I encourage you to do it. I know this may sound harsh, but there is no excuse to leave this earth before doing everything God has literally created us to do. This also reminds me of the quote by Lewis Carroll that says, “In the end…We only regret the chances we didn’t take, the relationships we were afraid to have, and the decisions we waited too long to make.” Although I am not sure of how we will really feel when we get to Heaven, I would rather be there knowing that I did everything I could do for God before my life on earth has ended.

Additionally, once you are mindful and prayerful of a goal you want to work toward, you must be intentional with doing so. One thing you could do to help prioritize your goals is to take a moment to write in and schedule certain things into your current/normal schedule. You can start by filling in time slots with things that absolutely must come first (i.e. family, work, church, sleep, etc.) Then, fill in other time slots with things you can do that help you work toward your goals. Be mindful of the time slots that occur when you would not normally be awake. Perhaps a couple days per week you could decide to wake up earlier or go to bed later than you normally do.

Remember that pursuing Godly assignments will often require sacrifice. That sacrifice could be sleep, or it could mean that you must temporarily discontinue other (optional) activities that you do during your week. There is nothing wrong with re-ordering your priorities if you are focusing on what God desires of you in your current season. This will also help you with feeling as though there is not enough time in the day. Yes, I do sometimes wish there were more than 24 hours in one day so I could get everything done that I want to get done… but that is why we prioritize! I also want to say that prioritizing something over something else does not necessarily mean they are not equally important. It means that time is of the essence, and God’s timing is always best! If God is leading us to do things NOW, we do not have to feel guilty about placing other important things on hold.

Before I started writing my book, I already felt on my heart that I would be an Author. At that time, I was serving in multiple ministries and enjoying my growth in Christ. I remember speaking with others about how I felt God put the desire on my heart to write a book. I would often talk about this “yet-to-be-written” book and how I wanted it to be an impact to many. One day, someone told me, “Casey, why don’t you actually start to write the book instead of just talking about it?” It was then that something just clicked, and I realized that I did in fact need to be more intentional with putting my words into action. This was even more so the case because I felt as though God was leading me to get it done sooner than later.

It can be easy to desire something yet spend so much time doing everything except what that desire is. I soon also realized that if I wanted to prioritize writing my book, I had to re-order my priorities. After being prayerful about it, I ended up choosing to step down from a couple of the ministries that I was serving in so that I could have enough time to dedicate toward my book. With still having a full-time job, I was able to write my book in about a year and spend a second year going through the self-publishing process. It was such a wonderful experience that allowed me to learn about not only writing books – but about myself, taking leaps of faith, and being able to accomplish goals.

I lastly want to say to not be discouraged by setbacks. When God has a plan, His plan will prevail (Proverbs 19:21, Isaiah 14:24). There may be times you are not financially capable of pursuing what you are called to pursue. I am not against making logical financial decisions, but you must believe that God will provide through your obedience of following through with Godly assignments! There may also be times when people tell you they don’t believe in you. But believe that God does, and that He has fully equipped you to do everything that is set before you so that He may be glorified (John 14:13). Following through with your goals will not always be easy. There will be things that come along that could be discouraging. Things may happen that are even completely irrelevant, but that try to steal your time or keep your mind occupied elsewhere. I pray that God gives you the vision, wisdom, strength, finances, and time to accomplish everything He has planned for you. When you prioritize God’s assignments, your obedience will grant you favor, and you will find yourself on the path that you were always meant to be on.

**If you wish to connect with Casey, the author of this post, you can contact her here: https://linktr.ee/caseycassady