Brothers and sisters,
I want to write about New Year’s Resolutions this week. I recognize that we’re over two weeks into January by now, but that may actually help me make my point. See, every new year, people all over the world make New Year’s Resolutions—something they want to do in the new year. Some will take up a new hobby. Some will decide this is the year they go to the gym. Some will try to stop doing something harmful. People take stock of where they are and project where they’d like to be in this new year.
But, as most of us know, New Year’s Resolutions get abandoned pretty quickly by most folks—to the point that there is a specific day of the year known as Quitter’s Day. According to Google, around 80% of all New Year’s Resolutions will be abandoned by the second Friday of each new year. So, January 10th is, unofficially, Quitter’s Day. And there are plenty of jokes and memes on the internet about Quitter’s Day. But most of those jokes come back to one main idea—that the person was silly to think they could keep their resolution.
I want to push back against that idea. First of all, I don’t think it’s silly for a person to take stock of their life and seriously think about things they could do that would make them happy, make them healthy, etc. There’s no need for the sarcastic, self-defeating attitude of, “Why would I think I could do better?”
Second of all, as a committed Christian, I have to push back against this “all-or-nothing” attitude. It seems crazy to me for a person to set a goal for themselves, stumble a little bit, and then decide, “Well, what did I expect? Of course I stumbled; I can’t do anything right!” We in the church know—or we ought to know—that everyone falls short. We all have good days and bad days. We all struggle to do the things we want to do and we sometimes end up doing things we don’t want to. But where the internet memes see no path forward, we Christians believe—or we ought to believe—that we can always get back up and keep trying. What else is the Christian life but seeking to act faithfully, falling short, and asking for forgiveness, only to be met by a God who says, “Of course I forgive you. Let’s set you back on the right path and keep walking”?
So, by the time this article comes out, Quitter’s Day will have come and gone. But I would encourage all of you, whether you made a resolution or not, to challenge yourself to do something new this year or to give up something harmful this year or to recommit to something you love this year. And on those days when you fall short of your goal, be gentle with yourself, and remember that life is a series of ups and downs, trials and errors. Through it all, we worship a God who loves us and encourages us. God does not quit on us; let us not quit on ourselves.
Happy New Year!
Pastor Ben