Ah, 2015 - a new year filled with new possibilities! It's exciting! It's refreshing! It's...daunting?
Yes, every year, we turn the calendar page. A fresh, wide-open field of blank days stretches ahead of us. We are challenged to fill them with things and events and choices that will make this year a year that matters, a year where we make a difference. So we pull out our pens and start marking up those blank spaces.
We also pull out sheets of notebook paper and write boldly across the top, "Resolutions for 2015." If we go back, we'll probably find similar sheets that say "Resolutions for 2014" and "2013" and so on. They are lists of promises or challenges we have made for ourselves. Probably, at least one resolution will include something about our weight, one will include something about our family, one will include something about our job, and one will include something related to having more fun. They are a list of things we want to see happen in the year ahead, a roadmap we can follow to achieve our goals, at least for now.
The problem is, rarely do we achieve those resolutions. There are many reasons: they may be hard, they may be irrelevant to what life throws our way, they may be frivolous, they may be things we find we really don't like. That's unfortunate, because it means we rarely succeed in achieving our goals. Yet we still need to make plans for the future and work to meet those plans. What are we to do?
What we need to do is what we should always do in life: align our outlook with God's. If we say we follow after Christ, then everything in our life should be in line with Christ's will. Yet I can honestly say that many times, my New Year's resolutions have little to do with the kingdom of God. Moreover, even when they do, they are goals I have set for myself; I have done little to see if they are what God would want me to choose. If I want to succeed in life, I need to align my ultimate goals in life with God - and then make sure my choices along the way, including my New Year's resolutions, point in that direction.
Fortunately, we find guidance on how to do this throughout the Bible. First, we have to trust that God wants us to plan for the future, because he has a plan for our future. God consistently tells his people this, as he does in Jeremiah 29 ("For I know the plans I have for you..."). God has chosen to work in this world through his people. He has a plan. Our task is to figure out where we fit into his plan.
Then we have to make sure that our priorities are in order. There are many things in life that distract us and confuse us. These things can lead us away from God's plan...unless we get prioritize properly. Jesus himself addressed this when he said, "Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33). Of course, this doesn't mean that if we serve God's kingdom, we'll get everything we ever wanted and all of our problems will be solved. It does mean that when we put God and his kingdom first, everything else will become secondary - and we will trust God to see us through.
Finally, we need to approach life with less concern about success...or rather, a redefined notion of success. In the book of James, the author speaks of a person making plans for his or her business. James scoffs at this plan - because we human beings do not know what the future will bring. Instead, he says, we "ought to say, 'If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that'"(James 4:15). When we reorient our lives to place God's will and God's kingdom first, we will redefine success. Whatever promotes the kingdom of God and accomplishes the mission of God will be our yardstick, not how much money we make or how many countries we travel to or how many people know our name or how many pounds we lose. It doesn't mean those measures of success aren't important or shouldn't be a goal - but they have importance and worth only in how they move us towards health and wholeness in our relationship with God and towards fulfilling our divine calling.
So this New Year, what resolutions should we make? Careful ones, thoughtful ones, achievable ones - but above all, faithful ones. God has a plan for you in 2015. What do you need to do to accomplish it?
In Christ,
Adam
PS One of my resolutions (that I pray is in line with God's will for me) is to increase my frequency of blog posts. I plan to write every Monday, but I hold that loosely - because God's calling may shift. For now, though, look for my blog updates every Monday!
Yes, every year, we turn the calendar page. A fresh, wide-open field of blank days stretches ahead of us. We are challenged to fill them with things and events and choices that will make this year a year that matters, a year where we make a difference. So we pull out our pens and start marking up those blank spaces.
We also pull out sheets of notebook paper and write boldly across the top, "Resolutions for 2015." If we go back, we'll probably find similar sheets that say "Resolutions for 2014" and "2013" and so on. They are lists of promises or challenges we have made for ourselves. Probably, at least one resolution will include something about our weight, one will include something about our family, one will include something about our job, and one will include something related to having more fun. They are a list of things we want to see happen in the year ahead, a roadmap we can follow to achieve our goals, at least for now.
The problem is, rarely do we achieve those resolutions. There are many reasons: they may be hard, they may be irrelevant to what life throws our way, they may be frivolous, they may be things we find we really don't like. That's unfortunate, because it means we rarely succeed in achieving our goals. Yet we still need to make plans for the future and work to meet those plans. What are we to do?
What we need to do is what we should always do in life: align our outlook with God's. If we say we follow after Christ, then everything in our life should be in line with Christ's will. Yet I can honestly say that many times, my New Year's resolutions have little to do with the kingdom of God. Moreover, even when they do, they are goals I have set for myself; I have done little to see if they are what God would want me to choose. If I want to succeed in life, I need to align my ultimate goals in life with God - and then make sure my choices along the way, including my New Year's resolutions, point in that direction.
Fortunately, we find guidance on how to do this throughout the Bible. First, we have to trust that God wants us to plan for the future, because he has a plan for our future. God consistently tells his people this, as he does in Jeremiah 29 ("For I know the plans I have for you..."). God has chosen to work in this world through his people. He has a plan. Our task is to figure out where we fit into his plan.
Then we have to make sure that our priorities are in order. There are many things in life that distract us and confuse us. These things can lead us away from God's plan...unless we get prioritize properly. Jesus himself addressed this when he said, "Strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33). Of course, this doesn't mean that if we serve God's kingdom, we'll get everything we ever wanted and all of our problems will be solved. It does mean that when we put God and his kingdom first, everything else will become secondary - and we will trust God to see us through.
Finally, we need to approach life with less concern about success...or rather, a redefined notion of success. In the book of James, the author speaks of a person making plans for his or her business. James scoffs at this plan - because we human beings do not know what the future will bring. Instead, he says, we "ought to say, 'If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that'"(James 4:15). When we reorient our lives to place God's will and God's kingdom first, we will redefine success. Whatever promotes the kingdom of God and accomplishes the mission of God will be our yardstick, not how much money we make or how many countries we travel to or how many people know our name or how many pounds we lose. It doesn't mean those measures of success aren't important or shouldn't be a goal - but they have importance and worth only in how they move us towards health and wholeness in our relationship with God and towards fulfilling our divine calling.
So this New Year, what resolutions should we make? Careful ones, thoughtful ones, achievable ones - but above all, faithful ones. God has a plan for you in 2015. What do you need to do to accomplish it?
In Christ,
Adam
PS One of my resolutions (that I pray is in line with God's will for me) is to increase my frequency of blog posts. I plan to write every Monday, but I hold that loosely - because God's calling may shift. For now, though, look for my blog updates every Monday!
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