The Youngs

UMMMMM.......WHAT RESOLUTIONS???

Remember January 1^st, 2009? All of those attainable goals and expectations of what you will accomplish as in the new year? Do you recall the eagerness and anticipation to even get started on those goals? Perhaps you are more like me, often thinking, “Well, if I don’t make resolutions, they won’t get broken!” I have always been a very driven, goal-oriented, plan-out-my-whole-life type of girl. Then I got married and had children, started a side business and went back to teaching full time. Some days, my goal is to make sure I get back home in one piece and with all my children! If I happen to even get my hair or full makeup done on days like that, I feel that I have really accomplished something.

Setting goals is a valid part of life, and gives us something to work towards. However, as I’ve gotten older (not necessarily wiser, though!), I have learned that my goal-setting should just be about how much weight I want to lose, or how much more time I can spend developing my musical skills. They’re not even about how many books I can read with my kids, or to have them skate independently by the end of winter. Again, those things are wonderful achievements, but they are not life-changing or life-altering events. I instead prioritize my goals to include things such as; How many of my unsaved friends and family can I witness to this year? How can I deepen my marriage and be the wife that God has called me to be? How can I nurture spiritual growth in my own precious children and in my students? How can I strive to live a holy and righteous life before God?

All of us, saved and unsaved, will one day stand accountable for what we have done. When we face our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I want Him to say to me, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have used your time well.” I can verify right now, that not all the minutes, hours or even days have been used to glorify God in the way that they should, but I don’t want to deliberately waste time and other gifts that He has blessed me with. I don’t think there are jewels to go in our crowns for the “most physically fit mom of preschoolers” or the “most scales practiced while children were getting ready for bed.” I wouldn’t receive those anyways! Again, I still want to set goals to improve my physical, financial and emotional quality of life, but they won’t mean anything, and I will likely not be able to accomplish them if my spiritual goals are not getting priority. Some verses that I love to have in front of me at work, or even just in the forefront of my mind are:

Philippians 4:13 “I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me.” This doesn’t’ mean everything I want to do, just the things that He wants me to do, even the things that seem impossible!