Planning Your Homemaking Year: A Biblical Approach to Intentional Living
- Allison Weeks
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
It's that time of year. "New Year, New You" posts and articles abound and you may be feeling the pressure to do a complete overhaul of your eating, exercise and housekeeping habits. You pull out the colored pens, crack open a brand new planner and start filling in the calendar with all of the new and improved ways you will do more and be more this year.
But what if yearly planning wasn't about adding more to our plates, but about gaining clarity on what truly matters?
Recently, Jessic Fisher and I discussed this topic of planning your homemaking year with a broader vision in mind than the typical New Year's resolution list.
Her method of creating a "to-live list" rather than a "to-do list" focuses on a broad vision of values-driven goals and dreams funneled down into a few main spheres of life "buckets". Then she uses her overall vision page and bucket lists to chip away at her goals on a monthly and weekly basis, assessing and tweaking the process or the goals throughout the year as needed.
Setting up a yearly vision based on your values & priorities will help you focus your limited resources of time, attention, money and energy on the areas where God is calling you to grow. Big-picture vision planning can facilitate faithful fruit-bearing in your spiritual life, relationships, homemaking, and personal growth; even for the busy homemaker caring for the ever-changing needs and demands of others.
What Are We Really Planning For?
The goal is to cast a vision that's bigger than yearly resolutions. It's about identifying what you want for your days, your home, and your family.
What habits do you want to cultivate?
What systems would serve you well?
What experiences do you hope to create?
This process helps you figure out the "big rocks", or the core priorities for the year, and then work backwards to incorporate them into your daily and weekly rhythms.
What We're NOT Doing
We're not getting lost in minutiae. As moms and homemakers, we must acknowledge that much of life is outside our control. Trying to schedule every detail for an entire year is unrealistic. Instead, focus on a big-picture vision you can work toward all year, while remaining flexible and willing to pivot when the inevitable curve ball comes.
We're not making plans that contradict our values. Your planning should be closely aligned with your priorities and convictions.
"Our values really help give shape to the plans…and if you're making plans that are not aligned with your values, you have a problem."
If faithfulness, hospitality, or simplicity are values you hold dear, your plans should reflect those values.
How Does This Help Us Follow the Lord?
Planning with purpose isn't about self-improvement for its own sake—it's about stewardship and faithfulness. Here's how intentional planning can draw us closer to Christ:
It brings clarity and purpose. When we know what we're aiming for, we're less likely to be tossed around by distractions or comparison.
It reinforces our values. Keeping our priorities written down helps us stay anchored when emotions threaten to derail us.
It informs our prayer life. When we've identified specific areas of growth, we can bring them consistently before the Lord.
It helps us grow in our God-given strengths. Jessica reminded us that our talents are borrowed glory—gifts from God meant to be stewarded well for His purposes.
It prevents the "I've lost myself" feeling. By clarifying who you are and who you want to become, you stay grounded even in the chaos of motherhood.
How It Helps Your Marriage
Planning is also a powerful communication tool. Your husband cannot read your mind! When you're clear about your preferences, dreams, and priorities, it helps him lead well and enables you to follow with grace.
Having ideas and dreams already written down means you can dream together and make actual progress, rather than just talking in circles.
A Note on Emotions and Expectations
Life doesn't always go according to plan, and our emotions can sabotage our progress. But when you're clear on your purpose, you can ride out emotional seasons without being completely derailed.
"Refer back to your written goals and vision to give yourself a kick in the pants."
This also helps manage unmet expectations. When you know what you want and have given it a positive framework, you're less likely to become a "grumpy guss" when things don't go perfectly.
This Isn't Manifesting—It's Selective Attention
God gave us amazing brains that work through selective attention. When something becomes personally meaningful, our brains start noticing it more often. Without a target or specific goal in mind, our minds will wander. But when we hone in on specifics, we start finding ways to move towards our goals. The opportunities are often already there—we just need to be paying attention.
How to Set Up Your Vision in 5 Steps
Step 1: Dreaming (Pictures and/or Words)
Start with a vision board, brain dump, outline, or even a video—whatever format works for you. Jessica creates hers digitally using an app like Goodnotes, adding images and Bible verses that represent her goals.
Think of this like a mood board for your life. It's an idea board that visually reminds you of how you want to grow.
Consider organizing your vision into buckets or spheres such as:
Spirit
Career
Home
Relationships
Intellectual
Finances
Health
Travels/Hobbies/Ministry
Step 2: Identify the Positives
Before rushing to fix what's wrong, pause to recognize what's going well.
Count your blessings.
Acknowledge your "borrowed glory"; strengths given to you by God to reflect not how wonderful you are but how wonderful He is. (See Seeing Green by Tilly Hillehay for more on the concept of borrowed glory.)
Reframe your weaknesses in a positive light. For example, as you learn operate in an aging body, you might be tempted to bemoan the fact of aging. Instead consider all that your body has done and is still capable of doing with proper care and set your goals accordingly.
Step 3: Identify Systems or Targets
Go through each of your buckets and determine specific things you want to see happen. Consider: What are your priorities? What systems would help you thrive?
For example, under "Health," you might write down specific protocols for macros, vitamins, or exercise routines. Under "Homemaker Excellence," you might write weekly cleaning rotation or monthly menu planning goals.
Then consider what are the points of resistance that may keep you from being consistent in these areas? By putting these on your mental to-do list, they stay top of mind so you can find solutions to mitigate resistance and build consistency when opportunities arise.
Step 4: Create Monthly Pages
For each month, pull a few action items from Step 3 and assign them to that month. Keep in mind what is alread on the calendar and plan accordingly. It may help to think of these action items as the "big rocks" you put into the month first before all of the inevitable "little pebbles" of dialy life are added. This gives you a better shot at working towards those broader vision goals.
At the end of each month, reassess: What went well? What needs adjusting? Then plan for the coming month.
Step 5: Create Weekly Pages
Each week, pull a few items from your monthly page and focus on those. This keeps things manageable and prevents overwhelm.
Tweaking throughout the year is good practice. Life changes, and your plans should be flexible enough to change with it.
Where Do You Keep These Plans?
Jessica recommends printing the planner and having it spiral-bound so it lays flat, or uploading the digital version to an app like GoodNotes so you can access it on any of your devices.
Options:
plain notebook or bullet journal
digital notes app like GoodNotes
wall or desk calendar with room to write in margins
bulletin board with post-it notes
productivity apps like Google Docs, Notion or Trello
The key is to find a system that works for you and keeps your vision fresh and visible.
Don't Forget the "Ta-Da" List!
Be sure to record your wins! Whether monthly, quarterly, or as often as you need, celebrate what you've accomplished. This keeps you encouraged and reminds you that progress is being made, even when it feels slow.
Put Your Plans Before the Lord
"The heart of a man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps" (Proverbs 16:9, ESV)
Be willing to pivot. Be willing to be interrupted. Your plans are not meant to box God in—they're meant to create space for you to steward your life well and remain open to His leading.
Planning your homemaking year isn't about perfectionism or control. It's about clarity, purpose, and faithfulness. It's about living intentionally in the roles God has given you, with your eyes fixed on Him.
Ready to start planning? Jessica has created a resource to help you work through this process. You can find it at learn.goodcheapeats.com.
Connect with Jessica Fisher
The Print & Go Planner (basis for today's episode)
AI CONTENT DISCLOSURE
We value transparency and the responsible use of technology in content creation. The following information outlines how Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools were utilized in the development of this blog post. A human [Allison Weeks] took notes from a conversation between two humans [Allison Weeks, Jessica Fisher] on Season 27, Episode 2 of The Art of Home Podcast.. Those notes were used by AI to draft a summary blog post. A human [Allison Weeks] edited and formatted the AI draft into the final post above.
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