new year

Hi! I thought I'd post one more little one before the end of the year.

You'll read and hear a lot about new year's resolutions, turning a new leaf (which I claimed to do with blogging a few months ago) and the like this week. You'll read about new diets, new financial help plans, new self-helps of various kinds. Many of you will resolve something or other that you've been meaning to make a habit for some time, and many of you will find success for a time. Some of you will succeed long-term. I've been wanting to run more, drink more water, read the Bible more, make some decent recordings, etc. Chances are, some of these things will happen for a while but then I'll hit the natural downs of life and feel silly or disappointed in myself or like a failure.

Chances are, most of you have gone/will go through these same things. We've all heard this before and we've all experienced it so I don't want too many unnecessary words. But I want to ask: what will it take to break the cycle? Is the cycle meant to be broken? Do we have any hope of ever actually changing for the better and accomplishing something good?

I certainly don't have all the answers or even a few of them, but I think a few things to keep in mind, like perspective, might help. Making attainable goals and going bigger from there. God asks us to be faithful with the small things so He may entrust us with the larger things later. Look back on the last few years of your life and evaluate it a little: what have you done that you're proud of? What have you done that you're not proud of? That you never want to do again?

I try to take things, rather than a year at a time, a day at a time. One of my favorite songs is by the band Five Iron Frenzy and it's called 'Every New Day.' It's better with music of course but the end of the song says:

Freedom means love without condition, without a beginning or an end.

Here's my heart, let it be forever Yours; only You can make every new day seem so new.