Why it is important to live life with intentionality

I'm not an athlete by any stretch of the imagination. However, I was challenged about ten years ago by a friend to give running a try. "Running?" I asked. How funny is that! I had never been in any kind of sport in school. I did accept her challenge and began running with her. Physically, it was the hardest thing I had ever attempted. It was very slow at first; just down the street a bit, then adding a little more distance each time. Before I knew it I had reached ten miles over time after a great deal of hard work and determination; something I thought I would never do! I now run regularly and it is one of my favorite things to do. I even ran my first half marathon a few months ago. How did I ever get to that point? The answer is intentionality. I had to be very intentional in the mornings to get up, put on my running shoes, get in the car and GO!

The same can be said of any area of our lives. As Christians, we are to be intentional about living a godly life every day. One of my goals as a Christian is to live my life with as much intentionality as possible. This is true especially in my quiet time with the Lord each day.

Paul was an excellent example of such intentionality throughout his life. In I Corinthians 9:24 Paul writes, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize." Some Christians today have become casual about their Christian life which leads to a mediocre commitment to Christ. As Christians, we should be running in such a way as to receive the prize. I truly believe the way we should run to receive the prize is with intentionality. We should be intentional in our prayer life, ministries God has called us to serve in, Bible study and relationships.

As a pastor's wife, I have to be intentional in many areas as well. I am to be intentional about being my husband's biggest encourager and supporter. Also, I must be intentional about being the woman who has been called to be by his side in this ministry and to be as passionate about his calling as he is.

Someone might say, "Why should I be intentional?" It is because without intentionality the things I spoke of such as prayer, Bible study, ministry, relationships and being an effective pastor's wife will never happen.

For example, in the area of Bible study your Bible is not going to jump off of your desk, into your lap and open on its own. No, you must be intentional by picking it up, placing it in your lap, opening it and studying if. Likewise, it takes intentionality to do all the things involved in becoming an effective pastor's wife.

As Christians, we would be surprised at what we could accomplish if we lived every moment of every day with intentionality. John Maxwell's Law of Intentionality states,

"If you want to reach your potential, you must do much more than experience life and hope that you learn what you need along the way. You must go out of your way to seize growth opportunities as if your future depended on it. Why? Because it does. Growth doesn't just happen-not for me, not for you, not for anybody. You have to go after it."

Are you living your life with intentionality? Join me in living a life of intentionality and together we will experience more growth as Christians and accomplish more with our lives for the glory of God!

Kim Higgs is the wife of Dr. David Higgs, pastor of First Baptist Church in Henderson, Texas. Kim taught in public school fourteen years. Today, she is a stay at home mom. She and her husband have three children: Neil, Ryan and Jana.