New Year's Resolutions FOR REAL!

It's New Year's Eve and time to start thinking about "New Year's Resolutions". Whether you prescribe to making a New Year's Resolution or not, the historically-proven reputation is that they are temporary and typically flimsy, at best! Most people make a resolution with good intentions at heart, but since the resolutions are usually of a superficial nature, they are short-lived and do no more than frustrate us and make us feel like a failure. This may have even led you to stop making resolutions all together, as it has for me.

This year, I made a point to research a little more about resolutions in general and I want to share what I found with you. New Year's Resolutions began in 153 BC with a mythical King named Janus (who January was named after). He had 2 faces, one on the back of  his head and one on the front. Because he had two faces, he could see the past and the future at the same time. On January 1 of each year, it was said that he could look back at the previous year and also forward at the coming year. At its origination, for the Romans, a resolution was focused on forgiveness from your enemies and giving gifts.

Fast forward thousands of years and we have begun to resolve to do much more than forgive - to get in shape, to get our finances in order, or to be more charitable. These are all respectable things to strive for, but are initiatives that take much diligence, discipline, and most importantly, significant change in our mentality. This is not so easily achieved, which is probably why so many of us fail to succeed in our resolutions.

When looking at the definition for resolution, one definition states, "settlement: something settled or resolved; the outcome of decision making". Another calls resolution simply "a solution to a problem". Combine these two definitions, and you come up with a permanent solution to something that needs to be settled in your life.

So aside from finances, health, and charitable endeavors, what are some issues that have plagued our lives and really need to be settled, once and for all? That is the question we should ask ourselves this New Year's Eve. We may even take it back to Roman times and purpose to forgive someone that we have held a grudge with for a very long time.

Now, if these issues are long-standing, just purposing to settle those situations is not going to be enough and we may end up right where we started. I suggest that once we determine those crucial areas in our lives that desperately need a resolution, we get down on our knees and pray for guidance and strength to carry out the DECISION that we will make tonight regarding it. I say DECISION with emphasis because we cannot go back on what we have decided. It is a SOLUTION, not a temporary fix!  Let's make a forever commitment to these resolutions this year!