Jan stirred her coffee thoughtfully with a look of disappointment on her face. Nancy looked across the table as she took a bite of the pumpkin bread and asked “what’s wrong?"
Jan said, “I am so discouraged. It has been only one week and I have already blown most of my New Year resolutions. I am so frustrated. I really wanted to stick to my new diet this time!”.
Nancy laughed out loud and Jan stared at her with wonder. “I’m sorry to laugh, it’s not at you, I promise”, Nancy said apologetically, “It’s just that I have struggled with New Year resolutions my whole life and last year I decided not to make them anymore.”
Jan looked at her a little stunned and said, “So you don’t think you need to change anything about yourself?"
Nancy laughed even harder this time and said, “Are you kidding?! The list is long and overwhelming to me and why I decided to take a different approach. Instead of making a long list of resolutions at the beginning of the year, I pick one new thing to work on every two to three months throughout the year. That way I can put all of my focus and energy into one thing at a time.”
“Did that work?” Jan asked
Nancy took a deep breath. “Well, at first it was extremely difficult. I made my list and started to put the easy things at the top, but then I realized that I was really just putting off changing the things that were most important and would be most beneficial to me and my family. So I picked the most difficult thing first and that was to quit smoking. In the beginning I had a lot of stops and starts and there were moments when I really just wanted to give up, but I didn’t. It has been nine months since I last smoked. Once I learned that I could overcome the most difficult thing, I didn’t feel so overwhelming to change the other things in my life. As a matter of fact, I am more confident now then ever that I can change other things, one at a time. Does that make sense?”
“Yes, it does! Congratulations! I have my list here with me, can you help me get started?” Jan asked
“Sure” Nancy said smiling. “But before we start, there’s one more thing. Making changes in your life takes more than a commitment to yourself. We break commitment’s to ourselves all the time and that’s bad enough, but I don’t want to disappoint others who count on me. I also made the commitment to God and my family, not just to hold me accountable, but to encourage me and support me through the journey. That has made a huge difference in my success. We don’t walk this path alone”
“I’m ready!” Jan said and with a smile on her face pushing the donut across the table out of reach.
It is the time of year when many people make resolutions to change. God’s call to holy living, is a call to healthy living. He needs us to be healthy and strong mentally, physically and emotionally to do his work. When we allow unhealthy habits to take over our lives it drains us of our strength and God given talents and ultimately robs others from the blessings that God has entrusted us to deliver.
Matthew 26:41 (NLT) “Keep watch and pray so that you will not give into temptation. For the spirit is willing, but he body is weak”
Change does not come easy and there will be moments when we lapse back into old habits. Satan is always tempting us, but through prayer and God’s grace we will be successful. We may fall one hundred times, but He will stand us up again each time and empower us to endure the journey.
When we change ourselves to live healthy with self-control, God will work wonders and through our transformation our lives will overflow with his abundance.
"I made a commitment to completely cut out
drinking and anything that might hamper me from getting my mind and body
together. And the floodgates of goodness have opened upon me - spiritually and
financially." Denzel Washington
“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”
― Lao Tzu
"You must admit you have self-control before you can use it.” Carrie Latet
“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”
― Lao Tzu
"You must admit you have self-control before you can use it.” Carrie Latet
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