Resolutions? Really?

Almost as easily destroyed as those pie crust promises, resolutions are made and then ignored with a thousand reasonable justifications, at least reasonable to us. Good intentions make for positive resolutions, but just like the soils of Jesus’ parable in Matthew 13, only the right situations seem to allow us to fulfill what we so bravely announced we planned to do. We are confident today, but then comes tomorrow.

I am sure there must be a patron saint of broken resolutions. He or she would have a heart full of compassion and understanding. The saint would be patient and ready to offer a second, third, fourth, or as many additional chances as would be needed to put the resolution back into effect. I look back at my history with resolutions and see that I have need of such a saint.

Resolutions can be the desire to do something different that is very simple in this new year. It could be reading a magazine through each month. It could be reading a book on a new subject sometime during the year. It could be limiting soft drinks to one twelve ounce can a day. It could be remembering to take a Bible to church each time you attend.

Then there are those life transforming resolutions. These might fit into what Jim Collins calls in his book, Good to Great, BHAGs – Big Hairy Audacious Goals! These are the kinds that include things like determining to go to church most Sundays or establishing a daily private devotion time of thirty minutes. Here we find resolutions that involve losing five pounds a month for the year or reading two books a month or writing an autobiography. BHAG type resolutions include learning a foreign language, volunteering for two hours a week as a middle school tutor, or working as a hospital volunteer.

How will you be guided in making any resolutions for 2013? Michael Hyatt says that one of the great determinants in being successful in finding success is staying focused on the “why”. Why is this goal important? What lasting benefits will come out of my efforts if I refuse to quit? Keeping our attention on the results rather than the needed efforts will go a long way toward helping us fulfill our resolutions.

That leads to the point of why make resolutions at all. That patron saint might ask us that important question. She would follow that up with questions like can you see the benefit of the results, do you understand what follow through will demand, do you believe the sacrifice is worth the results, or will you use what you gain to help others. The more benefits we see the more likely we will be to stick with our resolutions.

The more people whom the resolution will benefit the more often we will work at staying with it. May I suggest a few resolutions that can have extensive benefits for a large and perhaps growing number of people through a ripple effect?

• ·         Do to others what you would want others to do to you (Matthew 7:12)
• ·         Live a life that is noble and is a reflection of the nature of Christ (Romans 12:9-21)
• ·         Be kind to others, forgiving others (Ephesians 4:32)
• ·         Do all things without grumbling (Philippians 2:14)
• ·         Whatever your task, work heartily, as for the Lord and not men (Colossians 3:23)

Resolutions are goals. May we set goals for 2013 that are worth seeking even if we fail and life transforming as we offer our best efforts to succeed.

Thanks for the Problem

"You don't have a problem. You have an opportunity!" That sounds so positive until you see it in the context of a person in a boat sinking in shark infested waters. Yet the truth of the matter is many of the problems we confront each day do offer us an opportunity to show our best, move ahead toward our goals, or be strengthened to face whatever lies in the future.

These thoughts have been prompted by the recent post by Michael Hyatt, someone who has become one of my favorite bloggers. On August 20 he discussed how our problems can be assets waiting to be used in positive ways to move us forward in life. Sure, many times we feel like we're drowning, but a lot of that is because of the attitude and perspective we bring with us into the problematic situation. If we look for the opportunities for growth rather than the possibilities for failure, our chances for positive outcomes increase dramatically.

The problem you face may well be the precursor to more challenges. Moving through the grades of school is a good example. Most of us couldn't have tackled the requirements of the third grade without having gone through the first grade. How many times did you have to wait to take a preferred course in high school or college because there was that inevitable prerequisite class? The accumulation of knowledge is measured in steps. The same can be said for wisdom.

Frustrations can arrive fast and furious in the process of dealing with people. A local business recently closed due to the inability to get and keep quality employees. A long time friend from college days confesses that the most difficult part of his business is finding and keeping competent help. Such frustrations can lead to closing a business or the option of seeking innovative ways to develop the personnel that are essential. Therein lies the possibility for growth.

Jesus did not recruit his disciples by telling them, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Go tell everybody and I'll check back with you after I have been resurrected from the dead." His preparation with them was a bit more extensive. They were a challenge and a source of real frustration at times. Jesus, however, saw what they could be and knew what preparation was needed to turn them into people who could fish for people even better than they could catch fish.

Seeing possibilities rather than problems allows for the use of such skills as improved listening, seeing hidden potential, and being able to deal with situations with greater flexibility. Seeing possibilities offers people a second chance, the benefit of the doubt, and a way to move beyond mistakes. Seeing possibilities instead of problems gives others a chance to reevaluate their own worth in the bigger context and come out better than they were before.

As churches depend more upon the Holy Spirit in their midst, problems become opportunities for the power of God to be revealed. It was not just for the Apostle Paul's benefit that God said, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (II Corinthians 12:9). Challenging times are opportunities for God's power to be revealed and his glory to shine through the fog. Challenging times are opportunities for congregations to step back and say, "It is not up to us. It has always been in the hands of God."

Problems are the opportunities for faith to rise to the top and lead people to grow in wisdom, in understanding, and in the skill of depending upon God to work through them in providing the necessary leadership and resources. Seeing problems as opportunities is the first step in moving from focusing on man's limitations toward the power of God-focused faithfulness. As one respondent to Hyatt's blog wrote, she had come to realize that she was "swamped with opportunities!"