Making the Most of 2010

Here we are a day or two into 2010.  This is a time of the year that many people think about their lives, the previous year, the upcoming year, and often will make heart commitments to change in certain areas.  These are typically called New Year’s resolutions.  I read one blog that listed the top ten most common resolutions:

√  Get in Shape
√  Eat healthier
√  Get out of debt
√  Stop smoking
√  Start budgeting
√ Get a new job
√ Spend more time with family
√  Save or make more money
√  Get my life organized
√  Give more

I’d like to make some suggested resolutions for all of us this New Year:

√  I will simplify my life for the purpose of  kingdom living
√  I will love my family enough to get a will for myself and live as a responsible steward of life, health, finances, and the name of Christ
√  I will do these things more in 2010:  Plan time with key people for the purpose of deepening relationships, spend time reading God’s Word (I will read through the Bible in 2010), cultivating a desire to pray as a way to fellowship with God, look for experiences that bring dignity to life and uplift the spirit, and thinking about what I will wish I did in 2010 on my deathbed.
√  I will do these things less in 2010: Waste time with media and entertainments (turn off the TV and computer!), think about what I don’t have that I wish that I did, seek the affirmation of people who don’t care about me or my God, and allow laziness, routine, and negative habits to keep me from trying something new, taking a risk, or doing something just for the fun of it.
√  I will test whether it is “better to give than to receive” in 2010 by: Expressing more freely love to others with written and verbal “I love you”s, being impulsive with random acts of kindness, being generous financially to God, people in need, and an occasional stranger, and forgiving even when my feelings don’t incline me to so that I can be a peacemaker and peace-lover.
√  I will read ___ books this year for the purpose of loving God with my mind and enjoying God in truth no matter where it is found.
√  I will endeavor to glorify God by serving Him in the context of my local church and do so in a way that I would be happy if Christ should return in 2010 and find me doing it.

© 2010 Steve DeWitt. You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that: (1) you credit the author, (2) any modifications are clearly marked, (3) you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction.