Should Christians Make New Years Resolutions?

Ahhh, the New Year! Time for a fresh start… new beginnings… bogus prophecies that don’t mean anything.

Seriously, watch out for those yahoos declaring, “This is the year of your breakthrough!”

By now, you’ve made a few New Year’s Resolutions of your own. Perhaps you want to lose a few pounds, or break a bad habit, or learn a new skill. And then, in two weeks, when you epically fail at your resolution, you’ll say, “Eh, there’s always next year.”

Is it a good idea for Christians to be making resolutions?

Sure. Why not? There’s nothing wrong with setting personal goals.

Just remember that:

Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it to the glory of God! (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Unless your resolution is to diet… in which case don’t eat and don’t drink to the glory of God?

Consider also these words from James:

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such-and-such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit,” yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you’re a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16)

Yeah, it’s straight up evil to think that you control your destiny. But as Job understood, the days of a man are like the days of a hired hand. His days are few and predetermined. And God has appointed our limits that we cannot pass.

Man who is born of a woman

Is few of days and full of trouble.

He comes out like a flower and withers;

Flees like a shadow and continues not.

Do you open your eyes on such a one

And bring me into judgment with you?

Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?

There is not one.

Since his days are determined

And the number of his months is with you,

And you have appointed his limits that he cannot pass,

Look away from him and leave him be,

That he may enjoy, like a hired hand, his day. (Job 14:1-6)

Jesus said not to be anxious about anything: …what you shall eat or drink or wear. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them. Instead seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these other things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:31-33)

…when we understand the text.

(This video is by WWUTT. Discovered by Christian Podcast Central and our community — copyright is owned by the publisher, not Christian Podcast Central.)