2024 Year Review & 2025 Goals

Recap of 2024: (Bold text is the outcome)

1. READ THE BIBLE EVERY DAY. While I took the last 3 months off from strict daily observance, I think it’s generally a good default for every Christian. So, I’m back on the two chapter a day bandwagon. One in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament. And I’m going to try and make more of those readings in the morning than at night. Well, I certainly kept to my readings, only missing one day out of 365 (I was on a camping trip with some friends and just simply forgot about it), but I only read in the morning a dozen or so times.

2. MEMORIZE ROMANS CHAPTER ONE: Still at it! SIMPLY DIDN’T HAPPEN .

3. PRAYER: Again, took the last three months off from the daily positional prayer regimen, but I’m starting it back up. At least 10 minutes a day. I’ll try to make more of those moments in the morning than at night. Again, only missed that one night that I was camping out of 365, and I didn’t do any of it in the morning.

4. SERVING MY WIFE: Continuing to look for ways to serve her and support her through our challenging circumstances. I’m sure that cooking, cleaning, shoulder massages, and supportive words will be a big part of that. This upcoming August will be 25 years of marriage, so I’m looking to try and celebrate that in some meaningful way. We’ll see what presents itself. Serving my wife ended up being a big part of this year, as her health wasn’t the greatest and there were a lot of very tiring and painful days for her. So, yes, there were significant amounts of dishes and various other domestic services that I conducted, but we were also able to (thanks to the generosity of several people and to Ashlee’s flight miles she was paid for a job) take that amazing anniversary trip, which I’ll discuss more thoroughly below.

5. SERVING MY DAUGHTERS: Eating dates are pretty much out of the question this year, but I need to prioritize coffee dates this year, as Emeri enters the last calendar year of college, Tyne finishes up her junior year and starts her senior year, Gareth graduates from high school and start college, and Cardin marches on through middle school. Well, this didn’t look the way I would have ideally wanted it to, but there were still significant moments and quality timed shared. I had the great blessing of attending Acton University in Grand Rapids, Michigan with Emeri this past summer, as we both received full scholarships for the conference. It was a fun and edifying experience, as I continued to get to know her as an adult and she continued to get a glimpse of the world I’ve been swimming in for a couple of decades. I also got to help her think through grad school options and was very pleasantly surprised that she decided to pursue an MA in Ethics from my alma mater, SEBTS. I honestly didn’t see that coming when she approached me about it, and I had to keep my emotions in check so I didn’t squeal like a school girl.

I also had the privilege of supporting Tyne in her poetry publication and scriptwriting. We attended the production of her play about a month ago, and it was marvelous. I also got to watch Gareth perform in the Liberty Christmas concert put on by the School of Music, which was pretty awesome. She’s such a talented piano player and singer.

Cardin got intensely into basketball this year, and I’ve been able to cheer her on (sometimes a little too loudly) at all her games. More importantly, I was able to baptize Cardin a few weeks ago. It was such a joy to serve in that role in her continued walk with Christ.

I only had a few eating dates with the girls individually this year, but I certainly had many meaningful conversations with them. “Relationships” proved to be a big topic this year, and there was no shortage of daddy-daughter conversations on what healthy relationships look like. I was very thankful for those moments.

6. HEALTH-WEIGHT LOSS-WORKING OUT: Much progress has been made, but I’m in the “one step back” phase of weight loss. So, I’m prioritizing getting down to 200, and staying under 200 this year. I’ll attempt to work out at least two days a week and get up to running 3 miles at sub 27 min. I’m also back to doing 25 pushups a day. I might do a Whole 30 month sometime this Spring. Well, getting down to 200 simply didn’t get close to happening this year. BUT, I was able to generally exercise 2 to 3 times a week throughout the year. I also kept up with my 25 pushups a day. I made significant gains in weight lifting, and while I started and ended 2024 at 215 pounds, I’ve turned much former fat into muscle. I benched 225 for the first time since high school (I maxed out at 255 in high school). I started the year running 2 miles in 20:32, and finished the year running 2 miles in 18:01, with a fastest 2-mile time of 17:08 on Dec. 10th. I’ve also made it a habit of Whatever lung, abdomen, or heart pressure I was feeling over a year ago, it’s now gone.

7. VOCATION: Unless my dream job comes along, I’m going to be content with the flexibility that my online teaching position for Liberty affords me. But I’m keeping my eyes on the prize of hopefully getting back into the classroom someday. No changes on this front. My online teaching was generally adequate, though there were some shortcomings in the summer that hurt a bit.

8. WRITING & PODCAST: Probably won’t do any blog writing, as my dissertation has to be the priority, but I may produce another season of my podcast, touching on some meaningful topics I’ve had in mind for a while. This did not happen either, as other priorities took center stage in 2024.

9. EDUCATION: The goal at this point is to get the first two chapters of my dissertation written this year. It’s not the pace I wanted, and I’ve had to reevaluate my timeline, but I’m pushing forward. Again, I did not accomplish this. It is what it is. I did write a good bit of my first two chapters, but there were many responsibilities in addition to my constant grading that pulled at my time, making it difficult to find time and energy to write.

10. SACRA DOMUS: This one’s on hold for now. On hold.

11. TRAVEL: Unless a war or pandemic gets in the way, I’ll be headed back to Belgium again this year. Although it’s our 25 year of marriage this year, I don’t expect Ashlee to come with me, as I’m just sure how it would be financially feasible. But, who knows!? This was the biggest surprise this past year. My wife’s photography compensation along with the generosity of family and a few friends made it possible for Ashlee to fly out to meet me in Lisbon, Portugal after I finished up my Doctoral Colloquium in Belgium. We spent approximately 9 days together traveling around Portugal and Spain. It was a dream….a second honeymoon. It was only one of the few times that Ashlee and I had been away from the girls together overnight in the last 25 years. As I already mentioned, I was also able to travel to Grand Rapids for a conference with Emeri, which was also a tremendous privilege and joy.

12. COMMUNITY & CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Just not a ton of time for much outside of serving the family, grading, and working on my dissertation, but the hope is to get plugged into a small group this year. We miss the spiritual intimacy of a small group that we’ve had in years past, and we will be prioritizing that initiative. While we didn’t end up being able to plug into a small group this year, I was asked to join a sermon preparation group for our church as the elders preached through Revelation. I wasn’t able to contribute too much because of my significantly cramped schedule, but it was a blessing to gather with them to talk through the meaningfulness and complexity of the text. I also had the privilege of weekly online mentorship meetings with one of my former students. This was just as much a blessing to me as it was to him.

13. READ A FICTION BOOK: I barely started reading Kim by Rudyard Kipling at the beginning of last year and then never picked it up again. It’s not that I didn’t find it intriguing, just find it difficult to choose fiction over doctoral research. But I’m committed to continue to try. This didn’t happen, and it looks like I may need to put this goal on hold for a while.  

14. RENOVATION: I think this one will have to wait another year. And yet again, the bookshelves didn’t happen this year, but I did install a storage shelf in a hallway that my wife is turning into a butler’s pantry.

15. MOVING MOM: My mother is considering moving closer to us, and so we’ll be looking for a way to get her to Lynchburg this year. Helping her move and getting her acclimated to a new city will be a big priority for us. This was a huge project and accomplishment of 2024. Ashlee carried the bulk of the responsibilities related to this initiative, but I definitely got called into the process often, as we pursued a house right next door to us, communicated with the seller, worked through the buying process, and then spend the bulk of the year working with contractors to turn the shell of an old shack into a lovely studio home. Then we spent the last couple months of 2024 moving my mother in. It was a huge task, but well worth the challenges as we now have her safely settled in right next door to us.

GOALS FOR 2025!

1. READ THE BIBLE EVERY DAY: I still feel compelled to keep this going, one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament, but I’ll be MUCH more intentional about reading the two chapters in the morning rather than at night before I go to bed. (Side note: my two oldest daughters bought me my long desired Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible in the NASB 77 for Christmas. I’m excited to do my daily readings out of this new Bible in 2025)

2. MEMORIZE ROMANS CHAPTER ONE: I can’t walk away from this desire, and I’m hopeful that I’ll be able to carve out intentional time for this in the coming year.

3. PRAYER: Again, still convicted to keep this going, at least 10 minutes a day on my knees, but will attempt to do more in the morning this year than I did in 2024.

4. SERVING MY WIFE: What I continue to learn in life is that this responsibility is not a static one. It looks different in different seasons of life. Ashlee’s needs and desires five years ago aren’t necessarily the same needs and desires she has today. So, yes, there is a lot of cooking and doing of dishes and installation of shelves that will continue to be addressed, but there are also new circumstances that come with age and changing family dynamics that I’ll continue to assess in the coming months and years. I’m also trying to get better at finding that balance between listening and fixing. I know one thing for sure, and that’s that I’m a uniquely blessed man, and serving my wife for as long as we’re both alive is one of the greatest privileges God has given me.

5. SERVING MY DAUGHTERS: This too is in a season of change, as scheduling individual time with adults with their own initiatives and communities of friends isn’t an easy task. It will look different for me to support Emeri from afar, as she lives and studies down in North Carolina in the coming year. I’m sure it will include a few trips down to Wake Forest and more telephone conversations than I’m used to engaging in. It will look different for me to help Tyne wrap up her undergrad studies and figure out what her next chapter will look like. It has already begun to look different for me to help Gareth navigate college life and adulthood. Thankfully we still have one girl still in a very familiar place in life. Thanks for still being young, Cardin 😉 I’m hoping that budget allows for at least a few dates with each of the girls still in town, but we’ll see. Serving the girls has also included things like obtaining driver’s licenses, insurance, car maintenance, and vocational advice, among other things. I’m sure there will be a good bit of that in 2025. More than anything, I just want to be an example of a godly man for them to look to.

6. HEALTH-WEIGHT LOSS-WORKING OUT: The goal, as it was last year, is to get down to 200 and stay down there. I also have the goal of running under an 8 minute mile, 2 miles under 16.5 minutes, and 3 miles under 26 minutes. While becoming a power-lifter will never by my goal, I do want to reach a bench press max of 255, as I obtained when I was in high school. I’d also like to try and run a 5K this year, just to try and ease back into competitive races. Finally, I’m upping my daily consecutive push-up goal to 30 a day.

7. VOCATION: Unless my dream job comes along, I’m going to be content with the flexibility that my online teaching position for Liberty affords me. But I’m keeping my eyes on the prize of hopefully getting back into the classroom someday.  

8. WRITING & PODCAST: Probably won’t do any blog writing, as my dissertation has to be the priority, but I may produce another season of my podcast, touching on some meaningful topics I’ve had in mind for a while.

9. EDUCATION: The goal, again, is to get the first two chapters of my dissertation written, but also to get all of Chapter 3 and at least some of Chapter 4 written as well. Thankfully, I’m well on my way to finishing up Chapters 1 & 2.

10. SACRA DOMUS: This one’s on hold for now.

11. TRAVEL: Again, unless a war or pandemic gets in the way, I’ll be headed back to Belgium in September again. The plan is for me to go alone this time around. I don’t see any traveling outside of that trip, as budget restrictions and time limitations weigh very heavy in planning this year.

12. COMMUNITY & CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Once again, not a ton of time for much outside of serving the family, grading, and working on my dissertation, but the hope is to prioritize getting plugged into a small group this year. I’m certainly open to contributing in some capacity in our congregation, but nothing specific on the horizon as of yet.

13. RENOVATION: While the built-in bookshelves in my office and the refinishing of our hardwood floors will probably have to wait for another season of life, Ashlee is still asking for mor shelves for the butler’s pantry she’s attempting to wrap up, so the goal is to make that happen in the coming months.  

That’s what I have on my mind at this point. Hopefully it gives you all a small glimpse into our lives and/or encourages you towards your own healthy decision making in the new year. Blessings and Happy New Year!