The new year of 2016 is right around the corner. This is the time when many people will make New Year’s resolutions--goals they want to reach and things they want to achieve in the coming year.
Sometimes narrowing down a goal toward which you want to work can be almost as difficult as pursuing that goal. It’s important to make a resolution that is attainable, but also challenging. And, most importantly, as Crosswalk.com writer Carrie Dedrick says in her article “Why New Year’s Resolutions Always Fail,” “Regardless of what habits you plan to establish in 2016, keep them centered in the Lord.”
Perhaps you’re still rather overwhelmed with what goal to set for yourself in 2016. In his article “11 Resolutions Everyone Should Consider Making Next Year,” Relevant writer Jesse Carey provides 11 New Year’s resolutions which you may want to consider adopting in 2016.
One important resolution which Carey shares is “to spend more time in conversations that matter.” It’s easier to use small talk; we are often afraid to go “too deep” when talking to others. But, says Carey, we should work on fostering conversations “that challenge us intellectually, spiritually and socially.” After all, as Christians, our interactions with others should shine the light of Christ and edify others.
Another important resolution shared by Carey is to pray more. Prayer is one of the most powerful tools God has given us, yet I would venture to guess few of us use it as we should. Prayer often gets pushed to the side in our busy days. However, prayer ought to be the foundation of a busy day. As Martin Luther said, “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.”
Another resolution which you may want to adopt is to read more good books. This, of course, includes the Bible, but also applies to many other books. Make a resolution to read books that challenge your presuppositions, help you understand God more, and increase your faith. And when you find a book that challenges and helps you, share it with others.
One more resolution I will share from Carey’s list is “to share more meals with people you care about.” Perhaps, like me, you remember when every evening around the same time your family would sit down and have dinner together. There is something more to sharing a meal together than merely the food.
Maria Miriam in her Crosswalk.com article “The Theological Case for Cooking an Over-the-Top Thanksgiving Feast” quotes theologian Alexander Schmemann:
“[A] meal is still a rite -- the last ‘natural sacrament’ of family and friendship, of life that is more than ‘eating and drinking.’ To eat is still something more than to maintain bodily functions. People may not understand what that ‘something more’ is, but they nonetheless desire to celebrate it. They are still hungry and thirsty for sacramental life.”
Fellowshipping with others over food is important, and even an example Jesus set. As Carey notes, “when eating on the run becomes a lifestyle, you end up depriving yourself—and others in your life—of moments that could be used to build deeper relationships.”
To read Carey’s full list of New Year’s resolutions, click here.
What is your New Year’s resolution?
Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Publication date: December 30, 2015
Veronica Neffinger is the editor of ChristianHeadlines.com
