New Year, New You!

Everyone is familiar with the good 'o New Year's Resolution - right?
The Common New Year's resolutions are to be better spouse, spend more time with family, to quit smoking, drinking, to manage finances wiser, excercise more. Certainly the most common New Years resolution is probably to lose weight, and eat better foods.
Great goals! 1 Timothy 4:8 wants us to keep exercise in its proper place, "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."
Reality Check: The vast majority of New Year's resolutions, even among Christians, are in relation to physical things. Though this is not horrible, there is more we could be reaching for!
Now there are many Christians that make a New Year's resolutions to pray more, to read the Bible in a year or every day, and to get more involved in church. That's Great!
Unfortunately, these New Year's resolutions fail just as often as the non-spiritual resolutions. WHY? Probably because regardless of INTENTION there is no power in a New Year's resolution.
Resolving to start or stop doing something has no power, value or authority unless you have the proper motivation for stopping or a particular habit or activity.
Why do you want to read the Bible every day? Is it to honor God and grow spiritually, To fall more and more in Love with Jesus or is it because you have been told that it is a good thing or the Christian thing to do?
Why do you want to lose weight? Is it to honor God with your body, or is it to honor yourself?
Philippians 4:13 tells us, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength."
John 15:5 declares, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."
If God is the center of your New Years resolution, it has chance for success, depending on your commitment to HIM. New Year's resolutions are not bad, infact they are a good thing to aim for most of the time...But if it is only powered by YOU, It is likely to fail, WHY? Because we ALL FALL SHORT of God's intended glory!
If it is God's will for something to be fulfilled, He will enable you to fulfill it. If a resolution is not God honoring and/or is not in agreement in God's Word, we will not receive God's help in fulfilling the resolution.
So, what sort of New Year's resolution should a Christian make?
Here are some suggestions: (1) Pray to the Lord for wisdom (James 1:5) in regards to what resolutions, if any, He would have you make; (2) Pray for wisdom as to how to fulfill the goals God gives you; (3) Rely on God's strength to help you; (4) Find an accountability partner who will help you and encourage you; (5) Don't become discouraged with occasional failures; instead allow them to motivate you further; (6) Don't become proud or vain, but give God the glory. Psalm 37:5-6, "Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun."



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