A New Year is often the birthplace of good intentions but rarely the cradle of lasting change. How many of us have made resolutions, some monumentous, some silly, some we never intend to keep? It’s almost a reflex: we ask each other about our New Years Resolutions, simply assuming that we’re all making them together.

I think there is something in us that inately recognizes that the New Year is a good time to evaluate our lives, to measure ourselves by the standard of God’s Word, and make changes towards a preferable future. I spent an hour or two yesterday thinking about my life: what is going well and where God is calling me to grow. I used the questions Mark handed out on Sunday by Donald Whitney: “Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year.” Very helpful.

1 Timothy 4:16 (NIV) says “Watch your life and doctrine closely.” If we’re going to take this verse seriously, we do have to stop from time to assess where we are, where God is calling us to be, and how we’re going to make progress in that direction.

This year, why not skip the dramatic resolutions and instead spend some time evaluating your life, and asking God for direction for the New Year?

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