It's that time of year again- almost New Year's Day. A time when many of us get out our mental pencil and paper and start jotting down our resolutions. What shall we do better? Lose weight, stop smoking, drink less soda, etc.
I propose something new this year. How about we don't make any resolutions? Why don't we spend the whole day January 1rst reflecting on God's love for us, just the way we are. It gives me comfort to think that I can enjoy these last few snowy days of December and enter the new year not worried about the number on a scale or how drastically I need to change my diet.
God loves the me I am right now (and you, too). He loves us so much so that just a few days ago we were celebrating his birth in human form. He came, lived and died for our sinful, imperfect human selves. I don't believe that just days after celebrating this miracle he would want us focusing in vain over some self inflicted notions of how we can make ourselves better.
As I thought about this post, a quote from the book The Purpose Driven Life came to my mind. "Self help is no help at all." Have truer words ever been spoken? I mean, seriously, no matter if you lose that weight or find your way to financial freedom, what does it mean if you don't have God? Regardless of what label you have assigned to that empty spot in your soul, it can only be filled by him. Unless he makes us new, we will continue wasting our energy battling forces we can't win against alone.
Wow, this post took a serious turn. I guess I had more to say on the subject than I thought. I don't want you to think that making healthy changes or some of the other things we talk about around New Year's Day aren't important because they are. I just hope that in the very first moments of the newest year you can enjoy being the wonderful you that you already are and savoring the faithfulness of a God who loves you more than you could ever imagine just this way.
Great point! I never thought of New Year's like that, thanks for sharing!
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