Your Resolution Solution

I wasn’t going to talk about resolutions. Studies show about 80% of people who make them fail. I’ve been there. Have you? So why do we make them? They tend to reveal how flawed we are that we even need a resolution, and the idea that we can’t keep them further demonstrates that point.

I mean, the fact that we need resolutions is because we can’t keep resolutions!

And what about those words for the year? The last one I chose was my word for 2020: passion. Since my Bible study book on prayer was published the end of 2019, 2020 was to be my year to continue pursuing my passions.

Yeah, we all know about 2020. My passions seemed to fizzle like cold water on a fire, as speaking engagements cancelled and Bible study groups stopped meeting. As 2020 went up in smoke and we hazed into 2021, I didn’t even choose a new word. Now we’ve blurred into another year, and just the sound of 2022 makes me feel like we’re in some sort of dystopian novel.

Seriously, have we just missed two whole years of our lives? Did aliens come and take over? Or has it just been a nightmare and I’m going to wake up and find I didn’t actually write any of this?

Okay, back to reality. So I’ve decided, since I seem to have lost two years, 2022 will be my year to make up for lost time, and I’m going to “double down” on my passions—my word for 2022. (Did you catch that—22—double down?) I’ll just leave that one right there while I ask…

How’s your resolutions going? Do you have a word for 2022? Seriously, I really want to know in the comments. How’s it going so far? What solutions do you use to keep your resolutions?

They say one solution is to have an accountability partner—someone with whom you can keep each other on track, whether you have the same resolution or something different.

Another way to keep resolutions is a lot of prayer. When we talk to God each morning about our goals, it solidifies them and helps keep us accountable. And each time we blow it (because we all will from time to time) we can ask God for His help to get back on track.

There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand. Proverbs 19:21 NKJV

But maybe that’s the problem with our resolutions, and quite frankly, a lot of things. I hear people say all the time that they have trouble being consistent with their prayer and Bible time.

Could this be why we fall short at resolutions? Do we forget to “commit our work to the Lord” so our “plans will be established” (Proverbs 16:3)? Do we not rely on His strength, even though we quote Philippians 4:13 so often that we “can do all things through Him who gives us strength”? Jesus said, “Without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). And I know He is “able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20), if we’ll just ask

So why do our lives so often not reflect more of that?

Let’s be vigilant not to allow circumstances to cause us to lose heart and pray less instead of more (Luke 18:1). We can keep those resolutions and words for the year—if we pray always, unceasingly and about everything, and make the Lord our accountability partner (hopefully along with a human one, especially one who will pray with and for us).

If you haven’t already chosen a word for the year, how about the word pray?

Here’s an idea: A few years ago, I began posting the word pray in various places around my house to remind me to pray.* It has been a great help.

Let’s all commit to “double down” on prayer in 2022, not only for our own lives and resolutions, but for our country and our world.

It’s the most important, needed thing we can do.

I’m here to help or answer any questions you might have. You can comment on this blog or on social media, or contact me directly here.

We all need a little help sometimes. If your resolution is to read your Bible and/or pray more, let  Pursuing Prayer – Being Effective in a Busy World  help, guide and inspire you. You can check it out here.

If I could get double the amount of blogs out in 2022 than I did in 2021, I might have one twice a month. I’m certainly not overwhelming your inbox. So I hope you’ll subscribe and cheer me on, if you haven’t already. I really love to cheer you on and encourage you—hopefully doubly encourage you—in 2022. You can sign up here.

*When you do, you can receive my FREE e-book, a prayer devotion and “pray” coloring page (which you can frame and/or use to post somewhere to remind you to pray).

May God doubly bless your 2022!

Thanks so much for stopping by,

Penny