Twenty-One Resolutions for 2011
posted by Erin Davis on 12/27/10 | Twitter: @ErinGraffiti
Category: Myself; ; 22 comments
Are you a New Year's resolution maker? I'm not. Over the years I've found the tradition of vowing to change at the start of the new year to be an exercise in disappointment. Every year my diets fail, my habits stay the same, and my resolutions to do things differently fall flat.
Maybe that's because I've been focusing on the wrong things.
There's nothing wrong with making the choice to be healthier or try new things at the start of a new year. But this year I'm feeling motivated to make changes that truly matter. I want the same for you.
As I think about you and what I hope for you in 2011, my thoughts keep circling back to the impact of God's truth. Most of you come to this site because you've already been exposed to God's truth in some way. But I see evidence in your lives (and in my own life) that that truth hasn't truly transformed the way you live.
There's a difference between knowing God's truth and fully embracing it. I can't imagine the ways your lives would change if you chose to believe all God says about you and your life in His Word and allowed that truth to change the way you live. It's even more exciting for me to envision the difference you could have on your generation by knowing God's truth, believing it, and putting it into action. That thought gives me goose bumps.
I'm hoping to motivate you to live out God's truth in 2011. That means you've got to get serious about learning His Word (more about that later this week), make the choice to believe what He says in His Word, and allow His Word to change the way you live.
I'll help you get started. In the last chapter of “Lies Young Women Believe”, Nancy and Dannah list several powerful truths to counter everyday lies. Over the next few days I'm going to present these truths in the form of action steps. Your job is to identify the areas of your life that are in need of a dose of God's truth and put that truth to work in your own life.
Ready? Let's choose truth together!
1. I will praise God on good days and bad days this year.
God's truth says, "You are good, and what you do is good " (Psalm 119:68).
When everything is going right, it's easy to believe God is good and to praise Him because of it. But when life gets tough, we are tempted to question God's goodness and "forget" to praise Him. When your life gets messy, you can choose to believe God's Word rather than trusting your emotions and praise God in all circumstances.
2. I will live like I am deeply loved this year.
God's truth says, "The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying: ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness'" (Jeremiah 31:3).
Feeling unloved can have a huge impact on the way we live. Specifically, believing the lie that no one cares about you can lead to depression, anxiety, and destructive behaviors. The truth is that you are deeply loved by God. If you believe God's love is real and receive it, it will transform your life.
3. I will spend more time working on my inner beauty than my outer beauty this year.
God's truth says, "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well" (Psalm 139:14).
God's Word says you are fearfully and wonderfully made. Choose to believe it, and allow that truth to free you from the constant need to make yourself look beautiful on the outside.
4. I will pay less attention to what others think of me this year.
God's truth says, "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves" (Ephesians 1:4–6).
When a friend, a parent, or a fella rejects us, it's easy to let that rock our world. It's also easy to get wrapped up in trying to please the people around us in order to avoid that rejection. But God's truth is that He chose you and loved you enough to adopt you into His family. Choosing to fully embrace that truth provides the perspective we need to be less concerned about what others think.
5. I won't use stuff to make me feel good this year.
God's truth says, "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not be in want" (Psalm 23:1).
God is enough to satisfy your needs. If you have Him, you have everything you need. Believing this truth allows you to stop trying to make yourself feel better by having the right stuff. You already have what you need.
We'll look at 16 more truths in the next couple days. In the meantime, I'd love to hear from you. Do you need to put any of these truths into action in your own life? What changes can you make in 2011 to live out God's truth more fully? How would doing so change your life and the lives of those around you?
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HEY, GIRLS! We love hearing from you, but feel limited in the ways we can help. For one thing, we’re not trained counselors. If you’re seeking counsel, we encourage you to talk to your pastor or a godly woman in your life as they’ll know more details and can provide you with ongoing accountability and help. Also, the following comments do not necessarily reflect the views of Revive Our Hearts. We reserve the right to remove comments which might be unhelpful, unsuitable, or inappropriate.
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