Make 2016 Count Part 2: Start the New Year Weak

     I find it easy to get swept up in the idea of what New Year’s represents: a clean slate, a new start, a chance to make things right. It’s an opportunity to start the year strong, but far too often our resolutions seem to be full of ambitious goals of self-improvement that will never succeed. What if instead of trying to start the new year strong, striving to accomplish goals we’ve set to make our lives better, we decided to start off our year by being weak? 

     When the apostle Paul was facing a struggle that forced him to see his own weaknesses, God told him, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). Paul continues on describing his new outlook on his weaknesses saying, “So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me… For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Instead of looking to my own strength to find the willpower to make my life better, I can take Paul's view and boast in my weaknesses, failures, and shortcomings knowing that my brokenness is God’s platform for showing his power and grace in my life.

     Instead of making a resolution this New Year, I simply pray to live and walk in the grace that God has shown me through Jesus Christ. I need the truth of the Gospel in my life every single day. I need to preach the Gospel to myself— not to guilt myself into obeying the Bible, not to check it off the list of things to do that day, but because the Gospel “is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). In recognizing my need for the Jesus everyday, I am able to start my day off humbly, relying on God’s grace for my strength and motivation.

Here are three practical way to start your day off weak:

• Place some verses near where you get ready each morning. Some great verses besides those already mentioned are: Ephesians 1:19-20, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 8:1-2
• Start each morning acknowledging your weaknesses— from physical aches and pains that accompany getting out of bed to the emotional or spiritual exhaustion you may be experiencing from life’s struggles and trials. Pray and invite God’s grace into these weaknesses.
• Roll out of bed and onto your knees. When we kneel before God we physically acknowledge our need for His grace in our life. 

     So this year let’s start our year weak— with God in His rightful place as Lord and Savior and our place as grateful recipient of His grace. Let’s pray together that God will daily strengthen us in the the truth of His Gospel and that we will in turn help others find their need for His grace in their life. Let's make 2016 count by pointing others to Jesus in our weakness.

Make 2016 Count Part 1: Set Goals for You and Your Family

     At the end of every year, we all feel the pressure to change - lose more weight, read more books, volunteer more often, make more money. Despite our hardwired desire to improve ourselves, years seem to go by without many significant changes. I don’t know about you, but I want next year to count. I want next year to be the best year yet for myself, my family, my career, and (most importantly) my relationship with Jesus. The most effective way for improve ourselves is to set goals. Here’s a few resources to help you write goals that you can accomplish to actually change your life.

     Michael Hyatt is a world-class business leader and best-selling author. He wrote a short blog post on his website called, “The Beginner’s Guide to Goal Setting.” This post has 5 simple steps to writing goals that work. One of the most important take-aways for me: after you set a goal, write it down! You are statistically much more likely to accomplish the goals you write down rather than just keep in your head. Check out the other tips in his post.

     After you’ve set goals for yourself, you can help the rest of your family do the same. Stewardship.com is a site that helps us manage all of God’s blessings - from money to family to skills. If you want to help your kids set goals for 2016, check out this blog post. Hopefully it will give you the confidence you need to teach your children how to set and accomplish their own goals in the coming year. 

     What goals do you have for 2016? How about your kids' goals? Share them in the comments to help inspire us to make 2016 count! Make sure to subscribe to the COCUSA Blog with the button below so you don’t miss Part 2 of our Make 2016 Count series - "Start the New Year Weak."