Well, here we are again. It is a new year. Perhaps some of you have made New Year’s resolutions. Resolutions are the promises we make to ourselves to better our lives. But somehow, most of us never fulfill those New Year’s resolutions of losing weight, getting fitter, becoming more prosperous, being happier or giving up some undesirable trait or habit. Year after year, we shrug off the frustration and disappointment of not making those needed changes happen in our lives.

Often our New Year’s resolution has to do with the need to change an undesirable trait or habit. We often treat these issues as separate issues from the core person we really are. We want to fix the problem, not change who we are and how we think and live. But the Book of Proverbs tells us “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” We often try to put an ineffective band aid on a life-altering wound instead of treating the underlying cause.

There has to be a more proactive way to effect positive change in our lives. Many years ago, President Calvin Coolidge said: “Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil. Our great hope lies in developing what is good.” What is remarkable is that God has made a way to do that. It is found in the words of Jesus Christ in Matthew 6:33, when He said: “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Christ is telling us to make God our number one priority in life above everything else. Only then will “all these things be added to you.”

Seeking God’s kingdom is not seeking for a location; it is seeking His love, dominion and sovereign rule in our lives. It is to seek first His influence, His Word and His love in our lives. It means living in His will and authority. That creates a changed heart. That changes who we are. We spend much less time dealing with the dissatisfaction and distractions of life because we are proactively living in Christ and allowing God to provide all that is good. We are looking to heaven as we live Godly, holy lives. Colossians 3:2-3.

Do you want a new beginning in 2020? Romans 12:2 says: “be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”. Don’t settle for just one New Year’s resolution. God offers so much more. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold new things have come.” Can a person really change and find contentment and joy in life this New Year? The answer is yes, but don’t try to do it alone. Find fellowship in a bible teaching church for a very Happy New Year!

Roger Holl is pastor of Sterling Grace Community Church. The church meets at the Sterling Senior Center for Sunday Worship at 10:30 a.m. and for a study on “Equipping Grandparents” on Wednesday evenings at 6 p.m. All ages are welcome.

• Roger Holl, for the Peninsula Clarion