How to make a New Year more than just a new number
Just a few hours ago, people young and old stayed awake in anticipation and celebration of welcoming in a new year. Fireworks, applause, rejoicing echoed throughout the earth as the clock struck midnight and the reality of a new year set in. There is something significant about the idea of NEW that captures the imaginations and hearts of so many.
Maybe this year will be different.
This year I will finally accomplish _______________.
This year I am going to let go of ________________.
I am going to fix _____________.
On and on the lists of resolutions, dreams and goals get compiled. Setting goals and dreaming about the year ahead is vital. When we neglect to live with a sense of vision and purpose, we settle for the status quo and we embrace a life that comes at us by default instead of by design.
So how do we make a New Year count? How does it lead us to something NEW, and not just a new number (which takes most of us a few months to start writing correctly).
Here are 7 keys to making the New Year more than just a new number:
BE PRESENT
So much is lost because we are always trying to be somewhere else than where we are. The new that you want to experience this year only happens in one place - in the present. You can't experience new in the past - you can't experience new in the future. Embrace the gift of right now.
TAKE OWNERSHIP
We often miss the gift of new because we fail to own what we need to own. Denial never gets us to a healthy place in life. Are there areas from last year that you want to change? Own it. Do you wish you could undo somethings? Own it. Did you let others or yourself down? Own it. It is only when we have the courage to look at things as they actually are that we find the freedom to experience the transformation we really need.
LIVE AS IF YOU HAVE NOTHING TO PROVE AND NO ONE TO IMPRESS
So much of life can be consumed by trying to project an image of what other people want us to be or what we think we should be. This is exhausting. As a follower of Jesus, He becomes my identity. I can find freedom in resting in the work that He has accomplished for me. I am secure - not because of what others think or say, but because I have all I need in Him. Imagine how different this year (or our social media accounts) could look if you had NOTHING TO PROVE and NO ONE TO IMPRESS.
YOU ARE IN THE PROCESS OF BECOMING
You and I are people in process. We often want the destination, but God grows us and prepares us through the process. This means that none of us have arrived. We are in the process of becoming who we are. Day by day, decision by decision our lives are being formed and shaped. If you want to see things change in your life this year, what decisions, habits, thoughts, actions or attitudes need to shift?
STAY FOCUSED ON THE "WHY"
Often we can spend all of our time focused on WHAT we do or HOW we do it. The key, however, is to focus on our sense of WHY. Why do you want to see that area transformed in your life? Why do you wake up and do what you do? Why are you holding on to that grudge or bitterness? Why am I not willing to take ownership? A clear sense of why in our lives helps us to live on purpose.
BEING PROACTIVE IS A GIFT
You have been given an incredible gift: the ability to be proactive. God has given each of us the ability to take steps toward the things we know need to change. We could sit and hope things are different this year because it is a "new" year. The problem with this is things don't change without action. The areas that you desire to be different - take action. It is a gift that is designed to be used!
EVERY DAY IS NEW
As a follower of Jesus, every day is a gift of newness. You don't have to count down the next 364 days to get the start you want. Embrace the NEW that He has for you today.
"Look, I am making everything new!"
- Revelation 21:5