[Dats and I are in a hotel room in Miami with our friend Storly preparing for our flight to Haiti tomorrow. I had started this post a few days ago and wanted to finish it up before Ash Wednesday to clear the way for upcoming posts about our time in Cap Haitien.]
I know - it's February. So why speak now of New Year's Resolutions? Because I made three this year and I've kept them for 40 some days now - and that's maybe a record for me.
And I have to admit: it feels pretty good. Especially when everyone seems to diss the whole concept of New Year's Resolutions.
Even our local Christian radio station has been running a self-promotion ad this past month about the start of a new year and making the most of it. This ad trumpets the claim that New Year's resolutions have an 88% failure rate. (The source, I have discovered, is a 2007 study of 3,000 adults.) The implied message of the spot is to not bother with resolutions - listening to Christian music throughout the year will be just as beneficial ... and less painful.
And just after the beginning of the year, I came across a video clip online of a well-known Christian pastor (whom I like and respect) warning his congregation about the pitfalls of making resolutions. His caution was this: when we make resolutions, it feeds into our pride - because it encourages us to think that we have power in and of ourselves to make changes. God alone is sovereign and we can accomplish nothing aside from Him!
OK. But it seems to me that God is all for us working on self-discipline! His Word speaks positively quite often of discipline, both physical and spiritual. It seems to me that self-discipline is the sort of thing we should be encouraging in each other, rather than simply dismissing:
"But I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified." - (1 Corinthians 9:27)
"For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ." - (Colossians 2:5)
"But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness." - (1 Timothy 4:7)
"For bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." - (1 Timothy 4:8)
"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness." - (Hebrews 12:11)
"For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline." - (2 Timothy 1:7)
So here are my three resolutions for 2013 - and I tell you in order to encourage you towards self-discipline and so you can hold me accountable on days 44 and beyond:
1) Exercise six days a week - push ups and sit ups. I have been doing this off and on for a couple of years now but this is the first time I am pushing myself to be consistent and not to just let it slide when I don't feel like it. I need to be strong enough to continue carrying around a six year old who is growing up fast.
2) Read the Bible and pray daily. And I am trying to make sure I am really meditating on what I am reading and not just skimming. This is one of those things that when I do it consistently, I get so much out of it that I end up wondering why I would ever allow myself to get "too busy" to do it.
3) Journal every night before bed. I have journaled off and on (mostly off) since I was in high school. This is the first time I have set the goal to do it daily. And even though most nights I am just recording the basic events of the day, it is still really useful for a bit of reflection before falling asleep.
So those are my "big" resolutions for the year: things I should be doing anyway, and have done to a certain extent in the past, but now I am striving for consistency. I am disciplining myself to do things even when I don't particularly FEEL like doing them. And that is a very useful muscle to develop.
P.S. The other reason I bring up New Year's Resolutions at this late date is because tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent. I have grown to appreciate the practice of fasting - from something - anything - during the season of Lent. So if you didn't take the resolution challenge this January, it's another great excuse to exercise a bit of self-discipline.
I've got to settle in my mind what I am going to fast from for Lent by tomorrow morning. In past years I've given up meat, ice cream, and even chocolate. I'm thinking of giving up something really radical this year, but I've got to sleep on it before I commit. It's something that will take a whole lot of self-discipline for me and I want to make sure I am up for it.
How about you? Are you fasting this Lent? How does that discipline strengthen your spirit? I'd love to hear some stories ...
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