How are your New Year’s Resolutions holding up?
I’ve never been much for sweeping changes at the start of a new year, and I have faltered on many more resolutions than I’ve kept. If I wasn’t discouraged by goals a sight loftier than my commitment, then I was forgetting my hasty decision to jettison a bad habit until I was in the middle of indulging it. Just like that, I would find the perfect record broken, the fresh start sullied. Welcome to the new year – same as the old year.
As I know from experience, running short on resolve before the end of the first week doesn’t bode well for a successful resolution. It bears examination of the cause. What motivated you to make the resolution? Who is your resolution meant to serve?
Me, Me, Me. I won’t claim that self-improvement resolutions are inherently bad, but the downside of self-serving goals is being the only authority on success or failure. These goals are easy to make and easy to break, because they lack anchors in accountability.
A Loved One. Resolutions that serve a member of your household, whether spouse, child, or parent, improve accountability but suffer from the same risks as any other relational transaction. Your efforts may be appreciated – and they may not be.
The Greater Good. Will your goal serve the world? Be wary that noble intentions don’t become corrupted by praise or criticism, because serving mankind inevitably exposes you to both. It’s a fact of writing life since conventional success demands an audience, but audience response does not equate to merit. Consider the warning in Galatians 1:10. Work that exists to seek the favor of men or to please them is not the end sought by bond-servants of Christ.
Our Savior and Lord. Speaking for myself, the resolutions I’ve been motivated to keep have not been for me, you, or them, but for Him. In Matthew 6:21, Jesus teaches that “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” If your treasure is in heaven, then your heart will be in a resolution with the desire to acknowledge, serve, and honor God at the core of the commitment. In the days and months ahead, if and when your resolve feels weak, consider your motivation for the change you’re making or the goal you’ve set. At the heart of putting God first is recognizing that He is sovereign, and approaching our plans with the attitude advised in James 4:15, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.”
