I think that you would probably agree that the end of a year is usually a time of evaluation and contemplation. People usually ask themselves many questions around this time of year. Do I have the right job? Where am I going? What do I want to do? Do I need to lose weight? Should I move?
All this navel gazing eventually turns into one or more goals – which are sometimes called resolutions. I will exercise every day. I will learn Spanish. I will get a new job. I will stop drinking coffee. I will start drinking coffee. I will start reading more. I will put more money towards my retirement. I will buy a new house.
Three things can happen when the best laid plans are made. For some the plans are but dim recollections of promises made on a not so holy night. For others the charts, calorie counting and daily jogs give way to the busyness of life. Then there are others who genuinely follow through and have measurable gains (or losses!) as a result of their hard work.
Regardless of what camp you find yourself in, the work you do in meeting such goals will only lead to benefits that are short-lived when compared to results of living for Him who has given us all that we have. Here’s a suggestion for a new year’s resolution that will never leave you wanting:
I Timothy 4:8
“For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.”
Have you ever set a goal that had a promise of benefit now and in the life that is to come? How’s that for far-reaching profit? The Scriptures declare that the work that we put into developing a relationship with God (‘godliness’) brings blessings not only in this life but in the eternal life that is surely to come. Sounds just a little better than any retirement plan doesn’t it?
There’s a God that watches over the affairs of man. He had his wonderful son, the Lord Jesus Christ die for you. He has extended His kind invitation to all to accept the gift of His son. If you haven’t done so, why not make this year the year when you make Jesus your Lord? Why not make this year the year when you finally have a peace that nothing can take away? Why not make this year the year when you know for sure that there is a life beyond the one you are living now?
So go ahead, lose the weight, learn the language, save some more for retirement and even change the job – but put Him first before all of that and call upon the name of His son, the Lord Jesus Christ for your salvation. The Scriptures promise that you will never be disappointed in your expectation. And if you decide not to – well you can always wish again next year that you had. But remember, each year is another year closer to the day of Christ’s return. This could be the year when the Lord comes back, and if it is, you won’t get the same chance next year that you have right now.