My New Year’s Resolution for 2022 is simple. I want to grow deeper in my knowledge of God, so that I may become more like Him.
At the end of the year I want people to see a transformation in me. I want to be seen as:
- More patient
- More humble
- More generous
- More compassionate
- More forgiving
In doing so, I hope to become a true servant to others.
One of the things I realized in 2021 was how far I had grown away from building a relationship with God and how far away I had fallen from being the person who exhibits those virtues. It’s easy to do because without Him, we are self-centered beings driven to worship and desire things that ultimately bring fleeting happiness.
2020 and 2021 were full of trials. Because of my self-centeredness, it was easy to turn to cultural norms and away from Biblical principles. In doing so, it became harder to recognize all of the blessings wrapped in my life because I was lacking the wisdom to understand and appreciate them.
Tomorrow in church we are starting a study in Ephesians. As I have been doing since August, I started the study ahead of time. I’m glad I did because it inspired my 2022 New Year’s resolution.
**** Ephesians 1:17-18 ****
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.
****
I know the only way I can get to know God is by spending time in prayer and time in His word daily.
I also have to remember that God wants us to be happy but not at the expense of our growth in character. Sometimes He allows us to go through trials to refine us, making us more Christlike.
It seems fitting to close out my resolution with the words of British writer C.S. Lewis: “The Christian does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.”
Happy 2022!
