About Those New Year's Resolutions...

Well, it's mid-February, 2010, so how are you doing on your New Year's resolutions? WHAT? You did not make any New Year's resolutions? I love New Year's resolutions but I hear all the time of people not liking them and "I'm not going to make any this year." (My sister even said, "New Year's resolutions...YUK".)

To those people I ask, "Do you like how your life is going right now? Are you content to have it stay the way it is? Is everything just the way you want it to be?" OR...IS IT TIME TO EVALUATE? Maybe it's the "counselor" in me, but I love to evaluate--and reevaluate--my life. I love to take a look at how things are going and make some plans and goals to strive for.

Some people may say: "Today is the first day of the rest of your life..." And I think what they mean is: you can start fresh every day--and I agree. Sure we know that as we make a new habit we're going to have times of failure (gasp) and success--it is just important to keep getting back on track. Which brings me to New Year's Eve, December 31st, a time to "get back on track".

I love the excitement of a new year full of possibilities. It's like a new journal with no entries yet, just blank pages waiting to be filled, no messy handwriting scribbled upon the pages. Clean, clear and beautiful. It inspires me to pick up my pen and scribble my thoughts until the book is full. So it is with a brand new year. A years worth of days to fill with whatever we wish. (So what do you wish?)

We should make New Year's resolutions because: TIME IS PASSING, LIFE IS HAPPENING.
And, if we don't open our eyes and look around we miss so much and we will live our life doing the convenient, easy, "what comes naturally", what we have always done, what others are doing, what our habits lead us to do...and this just may not be the way we would consciously choose to act and live.

In our jobs there is usually an evaluation period...quarterly. So, Maybe we should make "New Quarter Resolutions". I believe in making quarterly, monthly, weekly, daily... OH, even hourly, or minute-by-minute resolutions! These are decisions we make to live life in a certain way.

Especially to be a Christ-follower takes this kind of attention because our human will draws us away from Christ-like living into selfish desires. So to be minute-by-minute yielded to God is an adventure that takes a decision and then attention.

So, New Year's Eve is not the only time we should make resolutions. Every day as we arise we should consider our day: How am I going to live today: selfishly or selflessly? healthy or gluttonously? Who am I going to serve: myself or God? What are my priorities: exercise? housework? time with husband and kids?

And, if we meet with success we can celebrate (HOORAY!!). And, if we face failure, we can start again... And I do believe we can get past "Today is the first day..." and onto the "Second day of the rest of our lives". We can make changes that will change who we are and how we choose to live our lives.

So you don't have to call them "New Year's resolutions"...how about just decisions made to live life in a certain way (O.K. not very catchy). But, there is no "dress rehearsal" for life--this is IT! We are living it...how are we doing?

Pepper Love