by It’s that time of year, where we put our best foot forward into Resolving something in our lives that has pricked our conscience over the previous years. However, as is the case each year, not too many months will pass before many efforts diminish, Resolutions come to a screeching halt, and encouragement turns into discouragement. This cycle is never ending, and the issues that were to be Resolved over the year gradually worsen as the years pass by.
Why does this happen? The answer is found in the lack of one word, Repent.
The simplest definition for Repent I have whittled down to is simply man turning to God for help, whereas Resolve is man turning to man for help. Man going to man is not necessarily a bad thing but Repent is what keeps God in the equation.
-
Resolve on its own becomes a place where man feels good about himself, whereas Repent is the only place where God feels good about man
-
In the end, Resolve becomes a place where man has faith in man, whereas Repent is the place where man puts his faith in God to keep him Resolved to the very end (I Peter 1:3-9)
It’s a great thing to set Resolutions, godly goals and vows going in to the New Year. If we want to Resolve these, God has given us some good men to learn from in His Word: Joshua, David, Daniel, and so many others. When it comes to Resolving to make a change, a good biblical illustration is the Prodigal Son. We know who this man was, and how he made a great mess of his life. The Bible shows us that “when he came to himself” he Resolved to be what his father expected (Luke 15:17-19):
-
He Repented = “I will arise and go to my father”
-
He Confessed = “Father, I have sinned”
-
He Served = “make me as one of thy hired servants”
How do we keep God in our New Year’s Resolutions like the Prodigal Son finally did? Joshua makes it clear, “choose you this day whom ye will serve … but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15).
As we go into a New Year, let’s make godly Resolutions in God’s way: Repent, Confess and Serve.
