Hello friends! I'm jumping on the blogging bandwagon to wish everyone a very Happy and Blessed New Year. I also wanted to take a little time to talk about my resolutions for 2012.
First off, I have to tell you just how much I hate making resolutions. I usually start the year with very lofty goals and by January 15th I've fallen off the wagon and given up. I've been thinking a lot now, and I've realized that this year was probably going to be no different. About two and a half months ago I had the brilliant idea to start a sugar fast today. Without going into all the details, I came up with this idea to try to prove to someone that if I could quit sugar, she could quit smoking. It was really not my finest and most understanding moment(s). And really, since this blog is called Finding God, definitely not something that was putting me on the path of love and righteousness or a WWJD moment. So instead, I've tried to come up with a list of resolutions that will keep me on the path to Finding God in 2012.
I think one of the most important things I'd like to do is to stop being fearful about talking about my faith. When I first became a Christian, I was pretty much shouting it from the rooftops and talked about it to everyone that would listen. It was probably pretty annoying to some. I was really on fire, but then I started to get a little deflated when I didn't get the responses from people that I hoped for. Eventually, I didn't even begin to discuss the subject with some people. So, my first resolution is going to be to stop shying away from those opportunities to share my faith and my journey. I'll start here, and hopefully, if the opportunity comes up in the real world, I'll get that fire back. You may ask, "What's the point?" Well, to quote Matthew 28 "Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
This is a nice segue to resolution number 2, taking at least 15 minutes a day to study the bible. This has been pretty difficult in years past. In fact, this is one of the resolutions that fell by the wayside pretty early on in 2011. I'm going to be honest with you here. Reading the bible can be hard. Especially reading the Old Testament. I've started countless bible plans and have given up most of the ones revolving around the Old Testament, because I simply haven't gotten it. Unfortunately, the only way I'll be successful with resolution number 1 is to give it another go. This is pretty important, because I'm finding the people that have given me the most insight into my life when times have been tough are the ones that have been able to instantly recall a bible verse that pertains to my situation in the moment. I'm always in aww when someone does this, but I've come to realize they can do this, because they study. I've found a couple of pretty great bible studies that I go to now, and I will probably keep going. Now, I just need to do the work on my own at home too.
Resolution number three is probably going to be the toughest. I need to take better care of myself. If you know me well in real life, you have most likely given me grief at one point or another for living my job. I'm probably never going to stop doing that, because let's face it, I love my job. What's not to love? When you see a child begin to speak in full sentences after only saying single words or see a parent with tears in their eyes because they are watching their child do something for the first time, why wouldn't you want to live that every day of your life? Although I'm realizing that the only way I'm going to be able to do this for the next 30-40 years, I'm going to need to take better care of myself. Don't worry, I'm not sick myself, but I know quite a few people who are. So, I've come to realize, we only have one physical body, so we have to take care of it. This means skipping the cookies for breakfast and hitting the gym more than once a month when a wave of insomnia has hit. In the upcoming weeks, I'm going to come up with a routine and find a way to stick to it. I've been resistant, because this will probably mean being up and out very early in the morning. But, I have a feeling that if I start now, I'll be appreciative when I can still get out of bed and live my job every day when I'm 70. I also have to confess that if I do this for a couple of months and start feeling better, I'm really hoping that person that is still smoking will take notice of the positive changes and become motivated to make changes herself. Ok, I know that this is still not the most loving and understanding of motives, but at least, I'm not trying to make my point by outstubborning. I hope that counts for something.
I wish all of you the Happiest of New Years, and I pray that you will all be blessed in 2012.
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