Personal Goal Setting
for the Christian Artist

Personal goal setting is a vital activity that will fill you with purpose. It will encourage you, as a Christian artist, to take practical steps towards achieving God’s plan for your life.

If you haven’t already read about setting boundaries, click here. The goals that I will discuss here will deal only with building your artistic skill.

If you have been to art school, you will remember the student adviser who offers counsel.

He assesses your current knowledge and skill level and then steers you towards the courses that you will need to reach your best potential.

Did you know that in Jesus, you have just such an adviser?

“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. ” KJV Ps 32:8

Jesus has the advantage, because He knows all of your story upon this earth. His ability to direct you is worth far more than any college counselor. He knows the skills you will need tomorrow and your most effective teachers.

When you are faced with countless options of workshops, seminars, residencies…there is only one that is best for you, at a given moment in time. Wouldn’t it be nice to know which one that is?

Perhaps you do not have the resources to take an expensive class to improve your skill. Isn’t it nice to know that He can lead you to free resources, or gift you with the ability himself?

I know this because He has helped me innumerable times. He will help you too.

Personal goal setting works best with a dated journal entry. It then documents your start and completion dates.

• Personal goal setting begins with prayer, dedicating your future to His direction.

• Affirm your trust in Him, when signing up in this new and unconventional school of art.

• Write down a simple assessment of your current abilities. Then set personal goals that are realistic and attainable. If they are too large, break them down to manageable sub-goals. Be specific.( Do you need to improve your drawing skills? How about setting a goal of completing one simple sketch each day?.)

• Define the skill that you would like to improve, as if you have already accomplished it ‘Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” Mk11;24

• Assess if you need to gather resources before beginning

• Define the intermediate steps needed to attain the goal

• Describe your emotions when you reach your goal

Experts on personal goal setting teach that the process is only effective, if the whole exercise is bathed with positive emotions.

As Christians, why would we not be filled with joy, knowing that we have the assurance of a kind and gentle partner, cheering us on to success?

As an irrepressibly right-brained artist, I have found reviewing the goals in my journal to be a tedious exercise. The 'experts' would certainly disapprove. If you can bear to constantly reread your goals – go ahead.

I have found that the whole activity of thinking, praying and writing them down once, is more than sufficient. My brain goes into overdrive and achieves the goals anyway. Constant reviewing them would only drive me crazy!

When I revisit my journal, sometimes months later, I am delighted to discover how faithful God has been. No less thrilling is the fact that the whole activity of goal setting spurred me on to achieve far more than I ever dreamed possible. Let it do the same for you.
Christian Goal Setting
Return from Personal Goal Setting to Christian artist Home