New Year Planning?

January 1st.
Just another day.
Or the beginning of something new.

Remember- we are often the only instigators of positive change in our life.

• No one else decides what we watch, eat, or participate in.
• No one else decides it’s time for a change.
• No one else can make the day-in and day-out little choices that bring about the life we want.

Most people loathe “New Year Resolutions” because January 1st mainly serves as a reminder of previous years’ failures. Yet, I’ve always enjoyed the cultural moment of pause, reflection, and dreaming.

Each year, I create a new “Year Goal List” for what I aspire to accomplish in that year. The list builds on the previous year’s list, includes a few items from my “Life Goal List,” and is separated into Family, Generosity, Work, Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength categories. While this might seem unnecessarily complex, this has been refined over the years and works well for me.

I encourage everyone to participate in their own process of planning because of my own experience with it. This process has allowed me to visioneer and experience things I would never have thought of before and have now turned into lifelong memories. These include running the Chicago marathon, summiting a 14er (14,000′ mountain), camping out at beautiful and novel locations, etc.

However, this year, I’ve noticed a change in my perspective as I plan:

In thinking about future plans,
the “who” should be more important than the “what.”

A lifetime full of accolades, accomplishments, and achievements can mean next to nothing if you have no one to share them with. Getting what you want can leave you more empty if you’ve focused on getting instead of giving your life away, cultivating meaningful, lasting, loving relationships.

The few things I mentioned above would mean less to me if I did them alone. Instead, the marathon serves as a memorial marker for Justean and me that we can push one another to endure what is painful and difficult to work toward our God given dreams. The 14er was shared with friends and was an epic adventure that was not so much about the summit of a mountain but about trust, laughter, and lifelong friendship. The camping trips were about including countless others in my circle that I got to know at a deeper level that can only happen after a day in the sun and a night around the campfire.

All of this to say: If you are like me and making plans for the new year, make sure:

• Your “whats” include the people you want to share the journey of life with.
  Do not fall into the trap of only planning things you want to do or achieve. They can be great, but long term, the “whos” will be more important to you. 
  
• Your “who” must be bigger than you.
  It can be easy to only plan for yourself- lose weight, eat right, read more, etc. These all are great but make sure your list is not just about you. Intentionally plan to do things with those you love and those you want to know more. You will experience the double blessing of accomplishing your goal and sharing life with others if you do. They will also feel valued because you made an effort to plan to include, bless, and love them.

As you plan for 2023, may God inspire you with ideas that create health, goodness, and experiences that will bless you, your family, your church family, and all those around you. And then, may he bless you with the discipline, self-control, perseverance, and grit you’ll need to do what he inspires you to do. God bless! Have a great year.

If you are interested in resetting some of your rhythms and habits, I’ll be preaching on “Rhythms” at First Nazarene Church beginning January 8th.

• The Rhythm of Rest (1/8/23)
• The Rhythm of Prayer (1/15/23)
• The Rhythm of Margin (1/22/23)
• The Rhythm of Work (1/29/23)
• The Rhythm of Learning (2/5/23)