 STEP ONE: Start with Prayer.
Instead of sitting down with a pen and blank sheet of paper, and instead of settling into a super-relaxing yoga pose to dream big about the new year’s possibilities, begin with prayer. Start with asking God what He would have you to do in the New Year. What are His goals for you? The biblical basis for this comes, for one example, from Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” As a believer, your top priority is to bring glory to God. If you fill your schedule and goals with extras, no matter how good they may be, you risk not having time for the things of God – the things that are most important. You may want to think back over the previous year. What were some areas where you experienced personal spiritual growth? If you cannot think of any, pick an area of focus in the New Year. Since all the Law hinges on the two great commandments – loving God and loving your neighbor, take a brief inventory. How did you do last year with loving God? How did you do with loving your neighbor? Regarding loving God – did you get back to in-person worship following the pandemic? Have you used the many crises with which our world is dealing to share your faith and give others hope? Have you set aside time each day to spend in personal worship with the Lord? With regard to loving your neighbors, were you more generous this past year than the year before? When opportunities to bless others came along, did you seize them? Do you put yourself last? The answers to these and other questions will bring you to a place of greater clarity where you can identify some measurable steps that you can take toward growth in these areas. You might resolve to share your Christian faith once a month, once a week, once a day. You might resolve to memorize a verse of Scripture a month. You might resolve to go on a short-term mission trip this coming year. What kingdom-building activities will you “seek first” in the New Year? You may ask your church leaders what you can do to serve within the church. Church leaders always have many suggestions for ways that you can show your community the love of Jesus. Start here – before your physical fitness goals, before you financial and wealth-building goals, before your relationship and social goals, start here. Step Two: Click here. Step Three: Click here.
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