Ten Things by Lorilee Guenter

September is a time to reflect on the year to date. When the girls were in school, September had more sway on our schedule and intentions then January. Now I can choose any month I want for reflection, kind of. Most classes and activities start September and January. 

This season I will/will not...

1) I will not let my activity level define my success. Sometimes being is more valuable that doing. I will take time to pause, it is good for health, especially mental health. God instructs us to pause, to rest so he can refresh us.

2) I will continue to write regularly. Every Tuesday afternoon for a couple of years I have had a writing date at a local coffee shop. Winter 2026, I stood myself up for a few months. I missed it. This summer, I had a writing partner. It's easier to keep a commitment when there are two of you. For the next year I may have a new partner, or I may have to go alone. Either way, I'm committing to myself to write regularly (and enjoying a coffee while I work). 

3) I won't let numbers define me. Metrics can consume us if we let them. The number of subscribers, likes, and comments, threatened to overwhelm and push us to do more and be more. Weight, calories consumed, calories burned, and clothes sizes can likewise shame us. 

4) I'll be teaching Sunday school again. The grade five six students often challenge me with their questions. If I arrive unprepared, they know it. Therefore, this is not a few hours on Sunday commitment. It is the time with God, time with curriculum, and time with young people who are curious, questioning and amazing to hang out with. I am looking forward to this time for the coming year. 

5) I will not leave everything for the last minute. I've been a procrastinator, working to deadlines for decades. Nothing spurs inspiration quite like a deadline. After years of waiting for the week, or day before deadline, I found many excuses to keep me scrambling. To change means relearning habits. But change needs to happen sometimes and this is one of those times. 

6) I will work to reshape my workspace and my workflow. Our house has gone from three occupants to two for the next year. Since we are living in a period of transition anyway, it seems like a good time to start adjusting what hasn't worked well. 

7) I will not overeat sweets and unhealthy snacks. Better said, "I will treat my body well by eating a healthy healthy, balanced way." Eating in a healthy balanced way challenges me to try new things. This year I've already learned that I can make the much maligned brussels sprouts in ways I enjoy. 

8) I won't be hard on myself when I fail. This might be the hardest item on the list so far. We live in a society that can be quick to judge. I've been judging myself and finding flaws for decades. We are all imperfect, works in progress. (Philippians 1:6) but we aren't condemned (John 3:17). Why then do I condemn myself? 

9) I will take necessary next steps to bring my novel from hiding on the shelf to shareable. On my "brain dump" tasks list, my novel next step has carried forward each month since April 2024. Each month I found excuses, sometimes wrapped up as "good reasons," to postpone action. This August I took one small step. I'm committed to taking another step this September. 

10) I will throw out this list of if it starts to be a weight that keeps me immobilised. Sometimes lists help. Sometimes they hold us back. I don't want any list to get in the way of what God wants to do with and through me in the coming months. 

Ten things, four months, and beyond. I could add don't stress, set goals (that might cause stress), laugh, explore, be flexible. Laugh, enjoy, be flexible will keep the enjoyment in whatever comes that I can't foresee. 

Lorilee Guenter is a Saskatoon based artist and writer. Her writing stems from the many questions she finds herself pondering and from the things she observes on her wanderings. One such question is how did events she lived through become the subject of history.

Carved in Stone or Bubbles in the Bath: Do You Know the Difference? by Peggianne Wright

Photo credit: P. Wright 2026

My To Do list is virtually endless. Everything from housekeeping tasks to vet visits to writing ideas to book marketing campaigns. You could say I hold a PhD in List Making. A kind of Dr. To-Do.

"We can make our plans,

but the LORD determines our steps.

(Proverbs 16:9 NLT)

Now, list making certainly has its advantages. For folks like me born in the middle of the last century, these lists written in the old fashioned style of pen and paper, serve as a backup generator, so to speak, since the memory cells are beginning to flicker. Sure, I can remember putting shovels full of sand in my Dad's car gas tank when I was three, but I can't remember the milk we need when I get to the store.

In all honesty, I have lists of lists with sub-lists.

"But be sure that everything is

done properly and in order."

(1 Corinthians 14:40 NLT)

So, when I think about the 10 things I'll be doing in the next four month of this year ... well, my brain suddenly begins to spin like the whirly-gig atop my Grandpa's garage in a major windstorm!

Now, I could be serious and imagine how I'll get finished organizing my sewing room that has been not-so-organized for the past 11 years. Or, I could excitedly think about how I'll have my Paws to Pray website completely updated and all my blogs nicely uploaded. Yes, I can smile widely as I envision how every room of the house will sparkle after a good and thorough cleaning. I can feel the deep satisfaction already for completing that new Jen Wilkin Bible study - well, it was new in 2023.

Ha!

What I've learned as time goes by, is that some lists are carved in stone, like the Ten Commandments, and some are well, like bubbles in the bath. The trick is to know the difference.

Every January 1st for the past 4 decades I've spent an entire day creating a new, customized day planner. Hours and hours of transforming lined Blueline Miracle Bind pages into a 52-week planner; transposing all the important dates - birthdays, anniversaries, memorial dates, holidays, and much more into its pages. Using my vast collection of coloured markers and pens, I embellish the most important ones with floral designs. A special section that moves from month to month includes check lists and schedules of important events and dates relating to my writing, ministry, continuing education, and fur-kids.

The ultimate organized gal, right?

Well, we find ourselves in September now; the changing of seasons that marks a certain adjustment in tempo and focus. Various clubs and groups start afresh after a summer break, new courses are scheduled to begin, engagements that may have been postponed over the summer are now planned to proceed.

So, as I sit down in my cozy study, my three four-legged colleagues all snuggled in their "cubicles", I pull out my planner from atop my piled-high credenza and gasp when I see the page lying open. MARCH 1st to 7th, 2026! I am truly shocked to realize that this ultra-organized lady has not once in six months consulted her day planner!

The world hasn't collapsed!

Throughout the past six months, I've managed to attend every appointment on time, met my writing deadlines (by a hair in some cases), and commemorated special occasions of every description. Somehow, by God's grace, I have continued to function and meet responsibilities without the rigid structure I believed I needed to stay organized.

What does all this boil down to? Well, I believe that through this time, God's been leading me to hold loosely the expectations and commitments I feel obligated to meet. He's quietly taught me to subconsciously assess the importance and value of all those day planner entries that weighed me down with worry and anxiety. He's given me discernment to recognize which ones were truly important.

Maybe I'm especially fortunate; no - I am INDEED especially fortunate! God has blessed me with this comfortable retirement after a stressful four decade career in business. At this juncture, He's reminding me that To Do lists and schedules don't always need to be strictly adhered to.

The next four months of this year will be busy for me. "With Ardent Strength", the third in a series of four Advent devotional books will be finalized for release, devotionals for monthly publications will be written, updates and renovations to my website will be undertaken, preparations for Christmas markets will be organized, marketing strategies will be planned and created, all in addition to the everyday, mundane tasks of running a household and raising three fur-kids.

So, while I know that my To Do list is brimming and my schedule is filling quickly, with God's guidance, I will set my 65-year-old nose to the grindstone and tackle the projects and tasks with eager enthusiasm and yet, using the wisdom and insight I've been blessed with, and continue making my lists of lists, with their sub-lists. Just In Case!

"Commit your actions to the LORD,

and your plans will succeed."

(Proverbs 16:3 NLT)

Peggianne Wright is a published author and is the founder of the pet parent ministry Paws To Pray, blending her passion for the Lord and all-things-K9 to form this unique, faith-based community. Peggianne is an ardent Bible study student, devoted dog mom, wife of 44 years, and lover of music. Her blogs Spiritual Scribbles and Fur-Kid Fanatics can be found on her website www.PawsToPray.ca and you can follow her on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/PawsToPray/ and on IG @Sister_In_Prayer.

Lucky 13 Things in Four Months by Bob Jones

                                          Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

We were asked to write about ten things we'll be doing in the next four months. My first thought was, “Only ten?” And then I read the rest of the prompt and saw that we could choose any number we like. So, I cooked up a baker’s dozen.

I'm lucky, or blessed I get to do these.

Number 1

In November my wife and I will be leaving for a month for Ukraine. It is an arduous journey for 70+ year-olds, flying from Edmonton to Toronto to Krakow, then transferring to a van to cross the Polish/Ukrainian border and arrive in Lviv. After teaching for a week in a seminary there'll be more cars, vans, and trains deep into eastern Ukraine.

The two days before writing this post have been the worst of the entire 4 /12 year war in Ukraine. Massive missile, rocket, and drone attacks with horrendous deaths of children and civilians. The most tragic happened on Ukrainian Knowledge Day, the first day back to school, September 1st. Imagine your children or grandchildren with no sleep the night before because of air raids, trying to find refuge in a bomb shelter and the next morning getting dressed up to go to school and gather again in a bomb shelter.

If you know Ukrainians, you won't be surprised that the children sing in those situations.

Number 2 

In the meantime, my wife and I are raising funds to assist in rebuilding churches and deliver humanitarian aid to the front lines. Our goal is $20,000CAN. We’re at $12,500 and change.

Number 3 

I've been writing a seven-session curriculum for pastors over the last nine months. After recruiting and training 25 facilitators and apprentices, we launched the cohorts September 1^st across Alberta and the Northwest Territories.

Number 4

I'm overseeing the translation and production of a book in Ukrainian for pastors.

Number 5 

And I decided that I should endeavor to keep my mind sharp and started a Masters of Leadership and Systems (MALTS) at Briercrest College. That begins in six days.

Number 6 

Before we leave for Ukraine, I'll be traveling to the Maritimes to work with pastors in Halifax and neighbouring communities, as well as up to Peace Country in Alberta, down to Calgary, and just West of Edmonton in Spruce Grove. We’ll be working as teams to listen to God’s voice and discern the Spirit’s specific vision for each church to reach their community with the love of Jesus.

Number 7

My practise for the last seven years was to write three blogs a week for REVwords. Most likely, and prudently, I will have to cut back back to two or even possibly one per week with all that's going on.

Number 8

The blog content will be heavy on justice in Alberta and Ukraine. I’ll be speaking on those subjects in churches over the next four months. I imagine I'll be extra engaged prior to October 19^th and the Alberta referendum. I also post on Substack.

Number 9

My to-read list consists of books that would source my knowledge in theology and justice. And my college textbooks will make the list a little longer.

Number 10

This week I start writing a seminary course for Growing an Effective Great Commission Church, to be completed by November 1st.

Number 11 

I've been asked to write social media prayers for Alberta MLAs in support of Pray Alberta. Isn’t that great?!

Number 12 

As well, I write prayers for Ukraine. That’s better than bombs.

Number 13

I will be experimenting on how to add an extra day of work to each week over the next four months.  

What are your goals? And if you need an extra one, I could use help with #13.

Thank you for reading. My advice to you is keep your goals away from the trolls. 

Planning and Plotting by Lorrie Orr

 

September Prompt: With summer over, autumn is often a time of new beginnings. What Ten Things will you be doing in the last four months of 2026? These could be short term goals you set, intentional practices, writing tasks, etc. Don’t be limited by the number – choose any number you like.

Photo: Lorrie Orr

September brings some nostalgia for the fleeting summer, and some excitement for a return to cozier pursuits indoors. I think back to my not-so-far away teaching days and want to organize my desk, sharpen a fistful of pencils, and arrange my notebooks. I feel energized in the fall, and I often start new projects. So, what will I accomplish in these last months of the year? These are 12 of my goals.

** Writing **

1. Revise The Characters of Christmas manuscript (written at least 10 years ago) for possible Substack articles in December.

2. Compile my Christmas recipes into an e-book for family and friend.

3. Take Ann Griffiths’ online writing course in September.

4. Continue to work on my children’s book: rough copy, revise, revise, revise

5. Check with my local bookstores to see if they will carry my memoir Life is Short but Wide.

6. Work on my Substack site and perhaps a self-contained website.

** Home Refresh **

1. Tidy my studio where I write and sew. There will definitely be new notebooks and freshly sharpened pencils.

2. Sort through photographs. Label / discard / organize into years.

3. Switch my wardrobe from summer to autumn/winter. This involves tidying closets and drawers, discarding worn items, and donating items that no longer fit my life.

4. A thorough house-cleaning. This has already begun. I try to use natural cleaners and have been very happy with Mint Cleaning Products – a two-woman company making products in Ucluelet, BC. In autumn I also use a peppermint oil spray around door frames and window screens to keep spiders away.

** Celebrate **

1. Out of 13 family members, 8 of us have birthdays between September and December. We have one combined party in September, another in November, and another in late November/December. It’s fun and busy. Plus, there’s Thanksgiving in October and Christmas in December.

2. My birthday. This year is a big one for me. One of those numbers that ends in 0. This one is hitting hard and has made me think a lot. I’m thankful for health and energy and hope to stay active for many more years. There’s so much richness in life.


I look at my list and think everything is doable. I also know that unexpected things happen in life, and I trust that I will meet them with the grace and wisdom God provides.

“In their hearts humans plan their course,

but the Lord establishes their steps.” Proverbs 16:9 NIV 

 

Lorrie Orr writes from Vancouver Island, BC.

She is the author of one book, a memoir, Life is Short but Wide,

and has a number of other books waiting to be worked on,

as well as a vast amount of writing in her head.

She also writes on Substack and her personal slice of life blog.